The Marionette
by Suriana
Summary: JC made the wrong choice. He thought siding with Everett was the only way to get the vaccine for the Grey Death to the people. Now an assassin is hunting down ex-illuminati and members of the resistance and Everett is pulling the strings.
1. Turn out the Light

She hauled herself up onto the roof, booted feet planted firmly inches from the edge as she stretched to her full height. Calmly she looked down the dizzying height to the streets, watching the blundering movements of the tiny people far below.

_'How easy it would be_,' she thought, _'to kill any of them_.' All she needed was a rifle with a scope and another life would be snuffed, a light put out forever. She tried to block it but the idea pounded into her head of its own volition. '_Easier still to step off this ledge and fall_.'

Motionless she waited, wondering if her body would accept the offer to plummet to oblivion, but not a muscle stirred save for her steady heart. On reflex she adjusted her kit bag which had shifted on her shoulders during the climb and checked that her weapons were still strapped tight. She had to tear her eyes from the streets below and with the snap movement of sinew she was sprinting across the roof, vaulting over the gap between buildings. She was a blur in the dark night, her body a machine, ready and able to obey her every command. But she was herself simply an instrument, every action compelled by the bidding of her father. She had only the illusion of freewill.

As suddenly as she had started she came to a halt at the edge of another rooftop. Dropping smoothly into a crouch she perched behind the ledge, focussed like a hawk on her prey. She exhaled slowly as she watched him, marvelling that her heart fluttered only slightly faster, despite her exertions. The cold night air whistled around her but she was too intent to feel it. Her target was at his computer, in perfect position to be sniped, but she suspected the windows were bullet proof. Dowd stood up and moved into the next room, her vision switching seamlessly into sonar as she continued her surveillance of him. He appeared to be retiring to bed.

_'Perfect.'_

She backed up a few feet, pulling an EMP grenade from her bag. She lobbed it over onto the roof of Dowd's apartment and was already making the jump as the grenade flashed, disabling the laser tripwires. Landing on the roof with a solid thump she slinked silently to the roof hatch. The rusted metal held fast as she tugged on it. Heaving with all her might she winced as the metal shrieked, the hatch jerking open.

She eased herself through the opening, scanning the tight, dark crawlspace as she dropped inside. Years of dust stirred beneath her feet and she screwed up her nose as she crawled along the ceiling support beams. She came to rest near the air conditioning ducts, which she judged to be directly above Dowd's bedroom. Slowly she cut away at the flimsy duct and pushed it to the side, the vent to Dowd's room now in front of her and she peered through it to the room below. She listened to the steady rhythm of his breathing as she patiently unscrewed the vent and lifted it out of the ceiling, placing it carefully to the side. Peeking cautiously into the room she could detect no security measures and Dowd appeared to be deep asleep. She secured a grappling hook to the ceiling beam and lowered a rope. In a single fluid motion she tumbled from the crawlspace, sliding down the rope to stand before the sleeping Dowd. She didn't even bat and eyelid as she unholstered her stealth pistol and shot him twice, once in the head and once in the heart.

Serenely she watched the blood seep through the sheets, disappointed at how easy it had been. Perhaps it could have been more challenging if she had attacked Dowd when he was awake. But she doubted her father would have approved of that. Not a second after she had thought of Morgan the info-link buzzed.

"Good work. Check his terminal and get back as fast as you can."

She wondered sometimes if he could read her thoughts through that link as well. Sauntering to his terminal she hacked into it, quickly scanning his communications before she was detected. Tracer Tong had been his last contact. She knew and accepted without question that she'd be heading to Hong Kong before long. Returning to the bedroom she looked again at Dowd and pondered that she was always so detached from her actions. She had not known this man, apart from what Morgan had told her, but shouldn't she still feel something. Even if she believed he was evil, as Morgan claimed. Could an evil man have slept so peacefully with his guilty conscience? Her father had trouble sleeping, but he claimed it was because he had the weight of the world's fate upon his shoulders.

_'Who am I to judge?' _She sighed in resignation, grasping the rope firmly as she swept back into the crawlspace. The darkness closed around her like a blanket and she felt more secure in her convictions. She took the time to screw the air vent back into place before she returned to the roof hatch, slamming it closed with a great screech of metal. Once again she stood on the roof ledge and unconsciously her eyes dropped down.

_'Just fall_.' She thought as she watched the lights moving below. The stars leered at her and the world suddenly seemed too heavy, too vast. For a second she even thought she felt it moving, spinning through space. And then she leapt.


	2. Hong Kong

Elise wandered casually through the streets, revelling in the press of people moving and shifting around her. As she made her way from the canals to the market she could feel the pulsing music emanating from the nightclub below. She liked Hong Kong, she enjoyed its crowds. Only here was she able to shift out of focus, become just another face in a sea of humanity. The place was always such a mess, so gritty and base and she enjoyed being a part of the filth, rebelling momentarily against all that was pure and clean. As she muscled through the market place she spied two triad members harassing a shopkeeper in a dark corner. Red Arrow from the markings on their clothes and she glared at them as she walked past. One of the triad thugs met her gaze.

"What are you looking at?" He grunted and took a menacing step toward her. Most of the populace were conditioned to lower their eyes and scuttle away, but she kept her cold eyes locked firmly to his. His resolve melted and he halted in his stride, deciding instead to shake his fist and return to his friend and the shopkeeper. She smirked inwardly as she continued through the market. It didn't surprise her that Triad scum were all truly cowards. She continued through the noise and bustle, neon light pouring from store signs, turning the marketplace and its inhabitants into strange alien figures.

The last time she had been in Hong Kong she had posed as a simple tourist, keeping a low profile. She didn't doubt she would excite more interest this time. Foreigners weren't as rare in Hong Kong as they had been a year ago but the powers that be still liked to keep tabs on suspicious new visitors. At first she had escaped their notice, but after spending most of her time walking near the marketplace, speaking to no-one and buying nothing, they had started watching her. And tonight with her coat sitting heavily around her frame, bulges in all the wrong places, Elise knew she looked like bad news and she liked it. She was a killer, there was no point in trying to hide it anymore. Not long after she had left her hotel she had picked up a shadow. She could feel his eyes on her as she strolled clear of the market and set off toward the nearby temple. There were far fewer people here this late at night and he was doing a lousy job of remaining inconspicuous. A grin twitched on her lips as she rounded the corner of the temple. Seconds later the shadower passed the same corner and stopped short. He looked around frantically, scurrying to the other end of the building and scanning the streets for her. He stood dumbstruck, scratching at his head, wondering where she had disappeared to. Elise chuckled from her perch on the roof of the temple as she watched him wander off toward the Canal Road Tunnel. How she loved heights. She crept to the other side of the roof, a nest of pigeons taking off frantically as she went past.

From her new location she had an excellent view of the Luminous Path compound. She had been watching the place intermittently for three days, trying to get some kind of indication as to whether Tong was actually there. As far as she could tell he was either away from Hong Kong, or never left the compound. At least not by any route that she knew of. Triad members patrolled the compound religiously, and dogs were always on guard. There were always no less that ten men inside the main building, or training in the courtyard, and nearly always in sight of each other. It was a dangerous place to break into and the last thing she wanted to do was to face such a risk only to discover that Tong wasn't even inside.

"I was wondering why I hadn't heard from you. Why haven't you done it yet?" Elise jumped slightly; she still wasn't used to the Info-link.

"I can't go in there and kill everyone." She replied sternly.

"It's a triad compound you stupid girl." If Morgan had physically slapped her it would have hurt less. "It's not as though they are innocents."

"I don't even know if Tong is there." Her pride bristled up, she wanted to be argumentative.

"Of course he is. I spoke to him two days ago and his transmission came from that compound."

"Why didn't you tell me that?" Elise failed to hide her exasperation.

"Because you don't need to know. Just obey!" Her hands flexed involuntary into fists, she had been able to tolerate his recent mood swings, but it was becoming a real trial.

"I'll check back in eight hours, and you'd better have finished." She ground her teeth together at the command, knowing she couldn't resist but wanting to disobey him like she had as a wilful, spoilt child. She would have to console herself with killing no-one but Tong, he hadn't directly ordered her to kill everyone.

'_Easier said than done_.' She thought as she watched the men in the compound. Elise slithered down the side of the temple and moved to the rear of the walled compound. With little effort she jumped up and caught hold of the top of the wall, pulling herself up slowly and checking that it was clear for her to drop over. No-one was near and she hauled herself over and scurried to a shadowy corner.

Patiently she waited until one of the guards came past her and she silently jumped out behind him, knocking him out. She was pulling him back into the darkness when the sudden barking of a dog froze her in place. She looked up at the dog, howling and tugging at its lead, it's teeth snapping as it worked itself into a frenzy.

"Dammit!" She growled.

By now all the other guards had heard the dog's warning and followed the direction of it's gaze. They began shouting and one of them moved to sound the alarm. While they were still caught by surprise she sprinted across the compound, moving with inhuman speed, which caused the guards to pause uncertainly. He was mere feet from the alarm when she jumped, her momentum carrying her forward and she caught him in the side with bone shattering kick. The air exploded from his lungs as he skidded backwards. The guard writhed in the dirt, moaning and clutching at his broken ribs. Elise spun around, tranquilizer gun in hand and she unloaded the clip into the nearest three guards. Another guard had rushed her blind side and knocked the gun from her hand. She turned so quickly he faltered with his next strike and she slammed him in the throat. He went down, gurgling and gasping for air. The remaining guards had decided that distance and heavy gunfire might be a good idea when a high pitched siren reverberated throughout the compound. Her first victim had tenaciously dragged himself to the alarm panel before slipping into unconsciousness. The guards laid down a warning spray of sporadic gunfire and unleashed the dogs as she hurried toward the main building, she had to reach Tong.

"Good to see your back in top shape Paul." Tong grasped Paul's hand warmly as he offered it for a shake.

"I'm glad to be. I was getting restless being the invalid while JC was out saving the world." Tong laughed heartily, not the least put off by Paul's cold demeanour.

"Too bad there isn't anything exciting happening. Except for this business with Everett." Tong rubbed at his temples, trying to ease his anxiety.

"What's he up to now?" Paul asked as he took a seat, nodding at Alex Jacobson, who only barely acknowledged him; the young man was so engrossed by his computer.

"I wish I knew. When I last spoke to Dowd he said he was very concerned, that Everett had become agitated, explosive. Our tech crew at Area 51 reported that Everett shut himself away in his lab there for 6 months. Then he finally emerged with no explanation as to what he had been doing. He merely hauled all his equipment out of there, locked down the lab and returned to his apartment in Paris." Tong took the seat opposite Paul but could only sit for a brief moment before he was up and pacing again.

"I know that Everett had very little interest in helping to produce and distribute the vaccine worldwide. He was so keen to get his hands on all the data stored at Area 51. We have to know what he is up to. We're still recovering from the machinations of one Bob Page." Paul wondered what Morgan Everett was playing at. It was a concern to everyone that he had been so intent on harvesting all the information from Area 51. Paul thought that perhaps JC should have destroyed the place when he had the chance, despite the consequences. Surely it would have been better than another power crazed madman. He was brought from his ruminations as Tong continued to bring him up to speed.

"Dowd said he feared it may be too late to stop Everett, that what he has planned has already been set in motion. And when I tried to pry something out of Everett a few days ago he cut my transmission off. Told me to mind my own business."

"I heard you couldn't contact Dowd?"

"Not for a week now. Your brother is in Manhattan, trying to find him."

"You could have asked me to look into it, I…" Paul was cut off by the shrill of the alarm sounding.

"Whoa. Bringing up security surveillance." Alex's fingers flew across the keyboard and the view of the compound flickered before them. The guards were running around like mad ants, pointing and shouting at the roof.

"Lot's of bodies, lot's of gunfire, but what are they shooting at?" Alex changed the camera angle, trying to get a better look at the roof.

"I'll handle it." Paul stated, already moving toward the door.

"Ok, big man." Alex drawled. Paul ignored the crack and made off for the courtyard, pistol in hand.

By now the call would have gone out to all members of the Luminous Path and they would be making they're way back to the compound. Whoever or whatever was on the roof was taking a big risk in hanging around. He vaulted up a flight of stairs and could now hear the shouting and gunfire. Minutes later he rushed into the courtyard just as a volley of gas grenades bounced to the ground. Paul skidded to a halt and jumped back the way he had come as the grenades exploded into a noxious cloud. The dogs yelped and crumpled to the ground, overwhelmed by the fumes, while the guards coughed and scratched at their skin and eyes. Their pain was further compounded as the assailant on the roof opened fire. They collapsed to the ground in agony, their knees and shins mangled and bloody.

The intruder was clearly attempting to only maim not kill and Paul took this as a good sign. He edged along the building, staying undercover but looking for a way onto the roof. A figure suddenly dropped down in front of him, the dirt swirling up in a cloud from the impact. He levelled his gun when suddenly the intruder spun and he was face to face with a blue eyed she-devil. They both moved in a blur of speed and he caught hold of her wrist as she tried to pistol whip him. He blinked when he realised she had ensnared his other wrist, pointing his gun away from her. She bared her teeth in a grimace as she tried to free herself from his clutches.

'_Not a chance lady_.' He thought as he tightened his iron grip, but he was surprised to find that he could not pull out of her grasp either.

For a moment they danced around the courtyard pushing and pulling, trying to unbalance the other. He tried to kick out at her knees but he could only just lift his foot off the ground before she pushed it down with a strike of her own. They stood locked together, neither giving ground, but Paul knew time was on his side. It could be mere seconds before the compound was flooded with Triad members, yet she did not seem afraid. Slowly, giving her plenty of time to surrender, Paul began to squeeze with his hand, crushing her soft flesh painfully against bone. He was surprised when she mirrored his action but he was confident he could hold out longer. With his augmented strength he knew it wouldn't be long until she capitulated.

They both heard the clatter of numerous feet closing in on the compound and for the first time her steely glare wavered. Frustration was marked clearly on her face but he had yet to see fear creep into her eyes. In a last ditch effort she tried to pull away from him with all her strength. She would have broken free if Paul had not reacted instinctively and squeezed her wrist with all his might while simultaneously trying to push her to her knees. There was a sickening crunch as her wrist bones were crushed and her gun clattered to the ground. The cry of pain that erupted from her throat was so piteous and her eyes brimmed with such fear and painful tears that Paul immediately relented. He had not meant to hurt her only to keep her from escaping. Thinking she was beaten he relaxed his grip on her wrist. The next thing he knew he was writhing on the ground, the most intense pain in his groin where she had kicked him. All he could do was watch through tear stained eyes as she vaulted over the compound wall and into the night as a dozen triad members came bursting into the courtyard.


	3. Hell Hath no Fury

Elise came storming into Everett's Paris apartment, her fury so thick and writhing, it was like a tangible cloud coiled around her body. Normally she didn't mind all the new security measures that Everett had installed, it made sense, even more so now. But she was not in a patient mood, and she almost wanted to tear the retinal scanner from the wall. The door to his lab finally opened and she stepped through, glaring angrily as she walked past another door, a door through which she had never had admittance. This denial of information had never truly grated against her until now. It did not take long to hunt Morgan down, he was as always transfixed to his terminal, analysing data of some sort. He turned to see who it was that approached him and he did a double take when he realised it was her.

"What, are you doing back here so soon?"

Elise did not speak but paced in front of him, like a caged animal that knows somehow it will get out and seek revenge. Her shattered wrist throbbed in time with her anger.

"You've completed your task then." It was not a question, as he knew she would never return without completing her task, for fear of his wrath. She shook her head silently, no, her flashing eyes never leaving his. She could see his rage and frustration come bubbling to the surface. She had his full attention now and he turned away from his terminal.

"You incompetent, you'd better have a good explanation for this!"

"No!" Her voice was severe, but even, controlled and dangerous. "You explain this." She took a sudden step toward him, thrusting her arm toward his face. She had to grant him some respect, not once did he ever show any fear that she might hit him.

"Have you gone mad? Did you bring this here solely to disgust me?" Everett stared in revulsion at the hand that dangled awkwardly from her arm.

"I want you to tell me how this is possible." Elise spoke quietly, her rage subsiding, as it always did in his presence.

"Your not invincible girl, even your bones will break under enough pressure and impact."

"So explain to me then how a man did this. How a _man_, with eyes like my own, with strength like me?" Elise studied his face, hoping he might give something away in his expression. She could see that this information seemed to irritate him and his anger dissipated.

"What man?" Morgan's eyes twitched slightly and Elise was certain he already knew who she was talking about.

"You'd know better than me I'm sure." She paused after the accusation but he simply stared at her and so she continued. "Markings on his face, dark hair, about this tall." She motioned above her head with her hand. "He was in Tracer's compound and stopped me from killing Tong."

"Denton!" Everett spat the name like a curse.

"Who?" Elise wondered that she had never heard the name and that Morgan had never mentioned it to her.

"He is of little consequence, a traitor to our cause. He is a fly, a nuisance." Everett shrugged off the importance of her encounter with Denton.

"Strong fly." Elise hissed as she cradled her wrist.

"Yes, he is augmented, like you. But certainly inferior, he will be no match for you now that you are aware of him."

"Why didn't you tell me about them in the first place? I could be dead right now!" She could feel her rage trying to resurface, only to be squelched again and she shook her head, trying to break apart the confusion of her conflicting emotions.

"Hush my child." Everett stepped toward her and put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sorry I was stern with you. I didn't want you to worry about him. I wanted to be sure you were strong and ready before I sent you to crush Denton. If I had told you he existed you may have hurried off to kill him too soon in order to win my favour and endangered yourself." The closeness of him, so rare these days, brought memories flooding back to her. Of how he had carried her on his shoulders as a child, how he had nursed her after she had fallen and scraped her knees. She remembered his caring voice and his kind eyes. She looked into his eyes now, so close to hers, and she saw no warmth there, no kindness.

Elise saw behind his honeyed words. She was not as naive as he thought. His voice and his eyes betrayed him, he was afraid of this Denton. This revelation struck her so much that she took a step back from Everett, shrugging off his hands.

'_He fears Denton. But not for my sake._' And she knew there had to be another reason why he had neglected to mention Denton before this. Everett was watching her with a curious expression, he almost looked suspicious. Her stomach became a cold knot.

'_Can he read my thoughts?_' She held her breath watching him, watching her and slowly he turned his back to her.

"Get your wrist fixed up. I'm sending you to Washington. I want you to be sure our security there is on track." He did not turn to look at her again.

"Washington?" She was stunned, this was clearly a punishment. "What about Tong?"

"Tong is no longer your concern."

Elise opened her mouth to ask another question but thought better of it and so turned on her heel and exited the lab. Clearly he was not going to give her any more information about this nano-aug she had encountered, but that did not matter. She was not without her own resources and he had given her a name, which was more than enough. Out of his presence Elise could feel her resentment begin to well up. Why did he have to keep so much from her? Especially when she knew it wasn't for her own good, but due to his own motives. Despite her best attempts to be mad at her father she could not help but feel guilty. Guilty that she should question his experienced judgement. After all it was he who had raised her, had taught her all she knew and had made her what she was today. A voice in her head nagged at her, telling her she ought to be grateful and obedient, but she just couldn't bring herself to feel that way. Elise did not know what was happening, it seemed as though she was constantly in conflict with herself. It made her want to crawl out of her skin; to tear and rend her own flesh so she could release that which she knew was trapped within her.

Elise made her way into the med-bay and caught hold of one of the med-bots. She set it to work on her wrist as she sat back and pondered the mystery of Denton. Until now she had believed her father was the only one to have succeeded in the use of nano-technology for augmentation. Could Tracer Tong do it? Is that why Morgan so desperately wanted him dead? And if so, how many nano-augs were there? Or had her father improved Denton himself, and then had Denton turned against him. Morgan had referred to him as a traitor. The idea intrigued her.

Elise's mind was buzzing at all the myriad possibilities, but in the end all she had was more questions and no firm answers. One good thing about being sent to Washington, she'd have a chance to do some snooping and hopefully not get caught by Morgan. But she suspected he might be watching her more closely from now on. The med-bot's bleep interrupted her train of thought. It had finished its task and she studied her repaired wrist. It ached slightly, as though it still remembered being crushed but it moved normally again.

Elise stood and stretched leisurely, she had barely had a moments rest in the past few weeks and she relished any chance she got to catch her breath. She strolled casually to the heli-pad where her chopper was refuelled and waiting. She signalled to the replacement pilot that was chatting with the mechanics. As soon as he saw her waving he hurried over to the chopper. She didn't recognise him, he was just one of the many MJ-12 goons that her father got to ferry her about. Obviously he had been warned that she didn't appreciate having to wait. She hoped he had also been warned that she didn't enjoy pointless chit-chat either. It was going to be a long flight and she didn't feel like having a stranger try to pry into the details of her life. They both clambered into the helicopter and the pilot turned to her.

"What's the destination today?"

"Washington." She had not meant to be terse, but inside the small cockpit she suddenly felt very tired.

"Yes Ma'am." He was silent after that as he busied himself with flying. Elise sat back and closed her eyes. She listened to the rhythm of the rotors and before they had even cleared Paris she was fast asleep.


	4. Washington

Elise blinked rapidly as she awoke from her slumber. She sat up in her seat and looked out into the dark night and the lights below. She assumed they were over Washington.

"I took the liberty of calling ahead; they know to be expecting you." She turned back to regard the pilot. It was a bit pointless as Morgan would have informed them of her imminent arrival anyway. No doubt the troops were running about like mad ants trying to make sure everything was in order before she got there. And she had no doubt that her pilot's communiqué was not for her sake but to give his counterparts a heads up.

"So what is going on underneath the Hoover Building?" Her pilot asked tentatively as they circled in for the landing.

"You know better than to ask questions like that." The truth was that she didn't even know herself.

"Sorry Ma'am." The pilot focussed intently on the controls in front of him, more so than necessary.

They landed in an abandoned lot a few blocks away from the Hoover Building and the chopper took off again as soon as Elise disembarked. She made her way through the dark streets, passing several clusters of street bums huddled around trash fires. Children, women and haggard men, despite the victory over the Grey Death it seemed that life was in no way improved for the lower classes. She could not help but feel that Everett should spend less time with his little schemes and do more to help the people. But how could she make him understand. He barely ever left his apartment, while she spent nearly every night wandering the streets and seeing the true state of the world.

She slipped through the inconspicuous security checks with ease, they were all expecting her. When she had first started working for her father the power of her position had been a thrill, but now she despised it. For she knew that she truly had no power to do anything. She hated watching the guards jump to attention, saluting her and fearing her; undoubtedly complaining about her as soon as she moved out of sight. Elise believed that a leader ought to command respect, not fear. But how could she do this when her orders and wishes were never her own, but Everett's. She was escorted to the Command Centre where Lieutenant Exeley awaited. As she entered he turned to her with a false smile.

"A pleasure as always to see you again." She knew very well that he did not appreciate an outsider coming in and telling him how to command his troops. She wouldn't have liked it either. "What brings you to Washington?"

"The powers that be feel that we are at risk of a security breach." Morgan insisted that she never use his name. He didn't want MJ-12 to know that there was only one man controlling everything. "I'm sure I don't need to stress the importance of our work here."

"Not at all. I can assure you, this building is impenetrable." She stared at him coolly and he turned away nervously to examine some reports on the main table. "I shall double the security though if that is deemed necessary."

"It is."

"And shall you be remaining here then?" The hopeful look in his eyes told her he would be greatly relieved to see her gone.

"Yes." She did not know what else she was to do. Everett had banished her to Washington and until she received further orders she had to assume that she was meant to stay put. Exeley motioned to her escort and they showed her to the barracks that had been arranged inside the building. She was given one of the empty officer's quarters.

"Is there anything you need Ma'am?" The guards asked her as they stood outside the room. She wondered if they had been ordered to escort her everywhere, and to stay outside her room at all times.

"No that's all, thankyou." She mustered as much politeness as she could and closed the door. She supposed she should not be angry with them; they were only following orders, as she had to. Elise looked around the sparse, sterile room taking her heavy coat off and tossing it onto the small bunk. There was a single desk with a terminal and she unhooked her utility belt, placing it next to the terminal before she sat down.

'_Time to look into this Denton_.' She thought as she logged into the computer. It occurred to her that Morgan could be monitoring her and her snooping, but it was a risk she would just have to take. It was time to start thinking for herself.

'_Denton is in Washington_.' The infolink buzzed. It was the first time Morgan had made contact with her for a week. She was in the Command Centre inspecting the new security measures that Lieutenant Exeley had installed. '_Have no doubt; he will try to find out what our mission is there._' Elise grumbled mentally, she wouldn't mind knowing herself. She almost wanted to ask Morgan which Denton he was talking about since she now knew there were two of them. But he always used information to his benefit and so now she would also. If he believed she was ignorant then the advantage was hers. She did not know if they were the only nano-augs beside herself, or who had performed the procedure. She hoped she might have the opportunity to ask Denton himself. Lieutenant Exeley was watching her with the same curious expression she always received when she was distracted by her infolink. She turned to him with a wicked grin.

"It seems you will soon have the opportunity to test your security Lieutenant." For a brief moment he looked genuinely concerned, as though he doubted his troops would measure up. One never knew when something might go wrong. But then he pushed his doubts aside.

"I guarantee our security can handle anything that you throw at it." Elise couldn't wait to find out. She was surprised to discover that she was actually excited by the prospect of facing Paul again. That is, if it was Paul that was coming to Washington. She had never been beaten before and she looked forward to the challenge of trying to capture another nano-aug.

'_I want you to order the troops to shoot on sight; I want him gone for good._' She grimaced at Morgan's command and had no choice but to relay it to Lieutenant Exeley. He had not ordered her to shoot on sight however and she suppressed a grin. She returned to her quarters, escort in tow, to prepare for his arrival.

Elise was busy cleaning her pistol when there was a knock at her door.

"Enter." She called as she began to reassemble the gun. They had never knocked on her door previously and she knew before the soldier even spoke that there was an intruder.

"Sorry for the interruption ma'am, but we thought you'd like to know that we've found a boy." Elise stared at the man quietly. This was not the intruder she expected. When she made no response the guard continued. "We found him on the second floor, covered in blood. It seemed a bit suspicious."

"Indeed it does. I would like to talk to him." She stood up and holstered her pistol, grabbing her coat and slinging it over her shoulders as she swept past the trooper and out into the corridor.

"Has he said anything about where the blood came from?"

"No Ma'am, he won't talk. He's scared out of his wits." That didn't surprise Elise.

They led her to the Recreation commons on the second floor where they were holding the boy. Elise walked into the room and found the boy, pinned to a chair with two heavily armed MJ-12 troops on either side. He couldn't have been more than twelve and he was quaking in fear as he looked in terror at the guns surrounding him. There was blood spattered all over his shirt and face. This poor kid was going to be traumatised from a long time; all she could do now was try to prevent him from suffering anymore damage.

"Hey there." She said as she crouched down to bring her eyes to the same level as his. He turned to look at her and she smiled at him. He gulped nervously but at least she had drawn his attention from the guns. Hopefully she'd be able to get some sense out of him too.

"What's your name?" Elise asked gently.

"B…Brian…" He stammered, liquid pooling at the corners of his eyes.

"Now don't worry Brian, no-one is going to hurt you." She motioned to the guards on either side of him to take their hands off him and they complied. "But did someone else hurt you?" She gently placed a hand on his knee and she smiled again when he did not flinch at the contact. "Where did all the blood come from?" She pointed to the blood on his clothes. Brian looked down at his shirt and when he looked up to her again there were tears on his cheeks and his lower lip trembled as he tried to speak.

"He…he killed him."

"Who did?"

"The guy downstairs. He looked like a spy." Brian dropped his head ashamed of the tears on his face as he wiped at them.

"Why would you say that Brian?"

"He wanted to know about the building, and the hidden tunnels that ran under it." Brian looked at her sheepishly. "Am I going to get in trouble?" Elise tried not to laugh; the boy was in more serious trouble than he knew.

"You'll be alright Brian, as long as you behave yourself and co-operate."

"I will, I will." He assured her vehemently and he fell silent for a moment, thinking. "I think he said his name was J.C."

Elise straightened up, grabbed a nearby chair and sat down. So it was the younger brother, J.C. Denton. She was lost in thought, staring into space when she caught a flash of movement near the open doorway. She switched her vision to sonar and could clearly see the silhouette of someone crouched next to the door. She turned to the guards next to the boy, while inconspicuously reaching under her coat for her dart-gun.

"Get him something to eat, get him cleaned up and then let him go." The guards hesitated to follow her command.

"But Ma'am," One of them began, "our orders were clear." Elise's eyes flashed angrily.

"I don't have the stomach to shoot a helpless boy, Private. Do you?" The guards avoided her angry gaze but helped the boy to his feet and escorted him out the door on the opposite side of the room. She remained seated, her head turned at an angle from the open doorway, but her eyes rested keenly on the silhouette. She watched him pull something from under his coat and gripped her gun more tightly. She called out to him and invited him into the room. She laughed outright as she observed his stunned reaction, looking around for the cameras. Both of these Denton's seemed a little slow-witted. He seemed to think better of his first choice of weapon as he stood and walked into the Recreation commons. She taunted him again as he cautiously entered the room, rising from her chair, keeping her right arm straight and concealing the dart-gun behind her hip. The minute he was clear of the doorframe she fired the tranquiliser dart, hitting him square in the stomach. He slowly collapsed to the floor and Elise felt somewhat saddened.

"I expected more of a challenge J.C. How disappointing." She grinned at him as his eyes rolled back into his head and he fell into unconsciousness. She stepped over his body and out the door, pulling an EMP grenade from her belt. She moved to a clear distance and tossed the grenade into the room.

"Guards!" She hollered as the grenade flashed.

In minutes there were several men hurrying down the corridor toward her. She walked back to J.C's body and waved at him with her hand.

"Take him to the storage room." She commanded and they hurried to obey her. "Make sure he's bound well." Elise stated as they dragged him away. She decided she would have time to be sure Brian had been properly taken care of before J.C. came to. Then she would get the answers she sought.


	5. Skeletons in the Closet

Elise hurried down the stairs toward the store room. She had been informed that her prisoner was regaining consciousness. She was hurrying from an altercation with Lieutenant Exeley who had wanted to kill J.C. as per the shoot on sight order. She made her wishes clear and he was not about to disobey her, unless Morgan were to intervene and order Exeley directly.

She reached the store room and the guards opened the door for her. She paused briefly to compose herself and then stepped inside. J.C. looked up, staring at her intently. She supposed the she was as much a surprise and mystery to him as he and his brother had been to her. She stalked around him silently, examining him closely. He looked so much like Paul, she almost couldn't believe it. If not for the differences in facial hair and the obvious signs of aging in Paul, one could easily mistake them for being the same person. She shook herself from her reverie, she was wasting valuable time. She suspected that Exeley at this very moment was contacting MJ-12 headquarters in Paris. In other words, alerting Everett of her violation of orders. Elise dragged the only other chair in the room across and sat down in front of him. He watched her expectantly. There were so many questions, where should she start. Her excitement was clouding her thinking. She simply could not believe her luck. Another living, breathing nano-aug. Someone like herself, someone who could possibly understand what it meant to live as she did. She also suspected that there was a history between these Denton's and her father. At some point they had turned against each other, they had defied him, and she suspected that they knew more about Everett and what he was up to than she did. Only they could help her understand the truth.

Finally she spoke to him, there was so much she had to ask him and she couldn't hide her overwhelming desire to know everything about him. He would not speak to her and she felt her patience wearing thin. He didn't understand how important this was and she had no time to explain it all to him right now. Nor would she dare, for Everett could be watching at this very moment. He seemed confused and finally asked who she was. Elise thought there would be no harm in telling him and that was when Everett finally spoke to her.

'_I'm warning you Elise, do not attempt to defy me_.' His anger was clear.

'_He has information I desire_.' She replied.

'_Anything he tells you would be lies, there is no point._' Elise tried to ignore him and returned her attention to J.C. She questioned him again, but Morgan would have none of it.

'_I am very disappointed Elise. I thought you had more respect for my judgement._' She could not hide her frustration at his interruption. Once again she felt the conflict within her, she did feel guilty, disappointed with herself for this behaviour. She owed him so much, how could she do this? Elise shook her head and gritted her teeth; it was as though there was someone else in her head, not just Everett.

'_You will learn what it means to defy me. Kill him now!_' It seemed that Everett was yelling at her so hard her head started to hurt. She stood up and kicked the chair away, pulling her pistol free. It glinted wickedly in the light as she aimed it at J.C. He looked up at her, genuinely surprised by this sudden change. He tried to reason with her and she desperately attempted to ignore his words. It made her head hurt so much, she couldn't stand the pain. She wanted to resist, but she couldn't break free of the compulsion that pushed her forward to rest her gun on his forehead. She tried to regain control of her body but the more she resisted, the stronger became the sharp, piercing pain inside her head.

'_Kill him!_' Came the order again and her skull throbbed agonisingly as she tried to pull away from J.C, as she tried to lower the gun. Her finger pressed against the trigger she tried to explain to him, to tell him she had no choice. But she could see he did not understand. Elise thought she heard something and turned her face away from J.C for a second. There was an explosion and her fingers twitched reflexively around her pistol, firing it. She was thrown to one side of the room and she sighed with relief as the pain in her head finally stopped and everything went black.

When she finally came to she was back in her quarters, lying on the bunk. She stood up slowly, still feeling a little groggy. She grabbed her gear which had been placed on the desk near the computer. As she opened the door her ever present escort snapped to attention.

"What happened?" She demanded of them.

"The prisoner escaped Ma'am." Elise suppressed a smile. Then she had not killed him when her pistol fired. She was pleased that she had finally, in a way, managed to disobey Everett. At the very least her hesitation and resistance had enabled J.C's rescuers to reach him in time.

"Get my chopper here." She commanded. "I'm leaving."

"Yes Ma'am."

She would return to Paris and wait for Morgan to hunt her down, as she knew he would. Then she would get the answers she wanted.

Toby walked through the dark apartment not bothering to turn lights on since he knew his way well enough. He hated doing this, having to be the go-between when Everett and his sulking nano-aug decided to stop talking to each other. Everett was furious over her behaviour in Washington, Toby hadn't been regaled with all the details and he really couldn't care less at this point. Everett was so mad in fact that he couldn't even bring himself to command her to come to his apartment. And Elise clearly had no compulsion to go there of her own free will. The bottom line was once again Toby had to give up his time to track Elise down and bring her to Everett. He shuffled into the bedroom suspecting she might be asleep but of course the bed was empty. In the dark he located the wardrobe and opened it. Curled in a ball at the bottom and sleeping as peacefully as could be was Elise. Toby ground his teeth; sleeping is what he ought to be doing at this very moment. He nudged her none too gently with his foot and he was staring down the barrel of her gun before she'd even opened her eyes.

"Oh, it's you Atanwe." She yawned as she slowly became alert. "No need to tell me why you're here." Elise stood up out of the wardrobe and sat her gun on the bedside table before reaching down to pull her boots off.

"How can you sleep in there?" Toby's voice was all asperity. Elise was shaking out her limbs as she made her way to the bathroom, flicking the light switch as she went. The sudden brightness pierced Toby's eyes but did not seem to bother her. He knew very well that she did not need the light to see and suspected she meant to cause him discomfort. He heard the shower come on and the rustle of clothes being tossed to the floor.

"Everett said he wanted to see you immediately." He called out from beyond the bathroom doorway, waiting expectantly. There was no reply from her and he grumbled as he returned to the living area. He turned the lights on, thinking that he wouldn't let her use that unpleasant, blinding surprise on him again. He paced around the room as he listened to her in the shower. Soon the water stopped and he heard the glass screen open and close. He strained to hear what he thought was her drying off with a towel. Soon she came padding barefoot over the carpet.

"Morgan should have come for me himself. He's a liar and a coward." There was no mistaking the resentment in her voice, but Toby would not stand such abuse of his employer. He spun on her, an angry retort on his lips. It caught in his throat as his eyes came to rest on her naked form, damp skin glistening in the light. He turned away, her words forgotten. It was hard to stay angry when he was flushed with embarrassment. Toby hurried instead to the window and stared out into the Parisian night. Coat hangers rattled noisily in the apartment as Elise sifted through her clothes. Eventually the bed creaked as she sat down to put her boots back on, but still Toby did not turn to look at her.

"Nice view huh?" She muttered to him as she entered the living room. Tentatively he turned to look at her and could finally breathe when he saw she was fully dressed. Elise was tying back her wet hair as she entered her cramped kitchen and reached up to open the cupboards. He couldn't help but peek inside her cupboards as she stood on tiptoe to reach into them.

'_Probably just crockery_.' He thought.

But to his surprise, instead of cups and plates there was a bag of, presumably stale, bread and a multitude of ammunition.

"Don't you think you should keep that somewhere safer?" He managed to utter as she grabbed a couple of 10mm clips. She shrugged nonchalantly.

"If someone _really_ wants that bread they can have it." Her tone was flat but her eyes sparkled and he knew she was enjoying tormenting him. Toby thought it was a bit unfair that she took her anger at Everett out on him.

His eyes unconsciously followed her as she moved around the apartment. Her shoulder holster and coat were slung over the back of a chair and she shrugged into them both, slipping the 10mm clips into pockets inside her coat. Returning to her bedroom she holstered her pistol and took several other items out of her wardrobe, concealing them under her coat. As she strolled to the fridge Toby wondered briefly if that was where she stashed her weapons. But the door swung back to reveal a bare fridge. Elise frowned as she scanned the empty shelves before grabbing one of the few items, soy food. She scrunched her nose up at it as she closed the door with a little kick.

"Let's go then." Elise said as she broke open the packet of food.

"Just like that?" Toby was sceptical; it wasn't like her to just go without a fight. She shrugged as she munched.

"Got to get it over with some time." She said around the half-chewed food in her mouth. Toby just watched her as she walked to the apartment door, opened it and stepped outside, leaving the door wide open and not even waiting to see if he followed. He gave himself a little shake and rushed after her, closing the door behind him and checking to be sure it was locked.

"Damn crazy bitch." He muttered to himself as he hurried to catch up with her.


	6. Master of the Marionettes

"Thanks for the wake-up call Toby." Elise chuckled as she left Atanwe glaring at her from Morgan's kitchen. She could not blame Toby for being suspicious of her obliging behaviour. Normally when she and Everett had a falling out she would be difficult, uncooperative and openly hostile. But today she was calm and collected, and all too friendly. Elise had come to realise that she needed to regain Everett's trust. If she wanted to find the truth she would need the freedom to search for it without Morgan constantly looking over her shoulder. And if he trusted her he was more likely to let slip the clues she needed. On her flight from Washington Elise had mused over the situation in great detail and she came to realise something. Everett depended on her. He needed her to enforce his will and she decided that she would also use this to her advantage. In many ways it felt wrong to be plotting against her father, but what choice had he left her?

Elise approached the lab, composed and ready to face Everett but when she saw that the security door was wide open, she knew something was not right. She edged slowly through the door and could hear Morgan talking to someone.

'_JC? He couldn't be here_.' Elise thought as she finally recognised his voice. '_It's suicide_.' She walked in further and indeed there was JC, sitting as casually as could be, engaged in conversation with Everett. She interrupted them and they both turned to regard her. Elise moved toward them, pulling her pistol from under her coat. If ever there was an opportunity to prove her loyalty to Everett, it was now. JC had reached for his own gun but she waved hers menacingly and he slowly raised his hands. Elise gawped in stunned silence at the LAM in his hand.

'_Is he insane!_' She thought, a LAM in such close quarters, he was sure to kill himself along with her and Everett.

All three of them were frozen in place and then Elise saw JC start to move. Despite the layers of his clothes Elise could still see the tension forming along his shoulder and down his arm as he prepared to throw the LAM. She waited as she watched the minute changes in his body that would tell her which way he was going to roll. She could have shot him before he even had the chance to throw but she decided to pause, knowing that Everett would never have been able to detect the small signals as she could. He would have no idea that she had allowed JC to live. She waited until she knew he would be safely clear and she fired at his empty chair. Elise instinctively pushed Everett to the floor and covered his body with her own. She hadn't planned on sacrificing herself to protect him; it had just been a reflex action.

The LAM fired, but instead of being torn into a thousand bloody pieces the air filled with gas. She unthinkingly gasped with surprise, filling her lungs with the painful vapour. Elise exhaled sharply and squeezed her eyes shut, grabbing hold of Everett and dragging him backwards, clear from the field of gas. Everett was more easily susceptible to the fumes and was moaning in pain, rubbing wildly at his eyes. Elise rushed to the emergency lab kit and grabbed a bottle of water. She tried to hold Everett still as she poured the water onto his eyes and skin, trying to neutralise the gas. Elise doubted Morgan had ever been exposed to tear gas before and this would no doubt be an equally unpleasant first experience given that JC Denton was the one to inflict it. Elise found she rather enjoyed seeing Morgan so helpless. Morgan wiped at the water on his face, the irritation was lessening, but there wasn't much that could be done for his lungs. Elise tilted her head back and ran the remaining water over her own face, shaking her head to remove the excess liquid.

"You let him get away." Morgan croaked as he pushed himself off the floor.

"Sorry, next time I'll leave you in the middle of a gas cloud." Her own voice was raspy and harsh.

"I don't need any of your lip girl. Another failure." He grunted as he rose to his feet. "This is unacceptable."

"Unacceptable?" Elise was on her feet in a flash. She couldn't believe she was hearing this. Nor that she had shielded this ingrate from what she thought was an exploding LAM.

"Yes! I give you the potential to stop a hundred Denton's, but you can't even kill one!" He fell into a coughing fit as he paced angrily. "I worked so hard to refine the augmentation process, worked so hard to refine you. But you're no good to me. You're a useless waste!"

Elise was rigid with the effort to control her own temper, her firsts clenched at her side. How could he say that her life was a waste, her own father? Say that she was worth nothing to him unless she was his efficient killing machine? The haze that always clouded her thoughts when she was around Everett was still present, but today it was simply no match for her boundless rage.

"Ungrateful, lying, coward!" The words came spilling out of her mouth before she even realised she was thinking them. She was so bewildered by her own impudence that she didn't notice Everett closing on her until his fist had connected with her cheekbone.

It was a clumsy punch she thought with an odd detachment as she staggered a step away from him. It was effective enough to stun her momentarily, but then her anger returned, red-hot and roiling. She lunged at him, her hands going for his throat but before she could take hold there was again a searing pain in her head. Only it felt one hundred times worse than when she had stood before the captive JC. Her legs buckled under her as her limbs went numb and heavy. She lay on the floor in a tight ball, her eyes squeezed shut as her head pounded and waves of nausea washed over her.

"What have you done to me?" Elise managed to gasp in between sobs of agony. Everett crouched down next to Elise, no wonder he had never shown any fear of her.

"Just a little precaution, you understand." His tone was flat as he stared at her with his dark, cruel eyes.

No, she didn't understand. How could she understand anything when it felt like her head was splitting open? She could feel the weight in her limbs lessening and she reached for her pistol, trying to aim at him. The pain was renewed fervently, her gun falling from her dead hand as she began to dry-wretch. She thought she heard the door to the lab sliding open and Toby came rushing in, the sound of his feet slapping on the floor ringing sharply in her ears and she winced.

"JC broke the security pad; it took me a while to override it. Are you all right Sir?"

"Oh I'm fine Toby. Just fine." Everett rarely stayed mad for long. Sooner or later calm rationality would kick in and he would begin plotting once again. Everett was till crouching in front of Elise and Toby regarded them with intense curiosity.

"Now Elise, now that you know you cannot fight me, I have some new orders for you." Elise wished he would not talk, the sound hurt so much and she kept her eyes closed tight, she had tried to open them but the dim light in the lab seemed so piercing.

"Since you seem to be having trouble with the Denton's we shall leave them momentarily. I have work for you here in Paris." He stretched back to his full height, turning from Elise and resuming his slow pacing. "And something that just might hurt the Denton's indirectly." Everett chuckled smugly.

"That little tramp Nicolette DuClare, as much as I admired and respected her mother, knows too much about me. If she helped Denton find me she might help my other enemies. And she helps fund that laughable resistance group 'Silhouette'." He busied himself with righting the overturned chairs from their scuffle with Denton. Scraping the metal legs along the floor as if he knew it caused her severe discomfort. "I know she will be staying at the Chateau DuClare for the weekend. You will go there and kill her," Adding as an afterthought, "and anyone with her. Then once you've accomplished this simple task, you will kill Tong. I don't care how you do it, if you have to murder everyone in his damned compound to do it, you will. Or try to lure him out if that turns your stomach." Again he laughed at her misery. "And if you happen across the Denton's you will kill them. No more delays, no more resistance. I want them dead."

"Father…why?" Elise whimpered as she pushed feebly at the floor.

"Get out of my sight." He barked and it was an order she was more than happy to obey. Still weak in her legs she only managed to get to her knees.

"Oh wait, before you go, I have another order." He stepped to her quickly, grabbing her roughly by the chin and shaking her head sharply as her eyes flew open to glare at him. "You will not kill yourself, or allow yourself to be killed." He emphasised each point with a quick jerk of her head. "We'll have no pathetic acts of nobility." Gently he brushed away the loose strands of hair that fell over her face and he smiled at her. She wanted to hurt him so much, all this pain she felt she wanted to force it onto him, but the idea alone made her head ache. He let her head go with a little shove, pushing her away from him as he turned his back on her.

Elise slowly hauled herself back onto her feet and stumbled out of the lab. Outside the lab, far from Everett, only then did the pain truly begin to subside. And her thoughts finally became clear and rational again. Elise realised that she had always felt compelled to obey his commands, driven by her loyalty and love for him, but she knew now there had always been something else urging her on. Until recently she had never physically attempted to resist or harm him and she understood why for so long she had felt like there was a constant conflict within her.

The idea that she trusted him, had believed in him and allowed him to perform this procedure on her, put these implants inside her, let him toy around in her head. And he had done this to her? Betrayed her trust by putting something in her head to maintain control over her. It hurt even more than the physical pain she was in. She felt justified in her criticism of him, in her recent loss of faith. But a lot of good it did her to know that. To know she had been right to doubt his intentions. Now she was forever bound to obey him, his commands had been clear and concise; she could see no way out of them. She pondered as she made her way to the apartment door, could his orders alone truly prevent her from killing herself. Just how much control did he have? There was only one way to find out. She was resolved as she stalked out of his apartment, hopefully she would never return.


	7. Chateau DuClare

Elise stood at the edge of the DuClare chateau, still as a statue against the wind that tugged relentlessly at her coat. She had tried to fight it, to resist Everett, but it seemed the more that she did, the less control she had. Elise knew for certain now that Everett had done something radical to her brain when she had undergone augmentation. Slowly it was changing her, adapting to her resistances and subverting them, until ultimately she knew she would be unable to put up a fight at all.

Silently she cursed Morgan, he had ordered her to come here tonight, he had been emphatic and as she peered through the windows of the mansion, her heart trembled. There was a small party of people gathered inside in the warmth, unaware of the monster that waited beyond the light. He knew there were going to be people here tonight. Morgan was doing this on purpose to torment her, to break her, forcing her to kill innocent bystanders. If she was a monster then what kind of a nightmare had he become?

_"Get it over with."_ He was actually going to watch, she thought with revulsion. But here was no time to think about it, her body was already moving toward the back door. She knew she didn't want to do this and yet at the same time she was looking forward to it. But she knew that wasn't her, it was the insidious presence in her head. This duality of emotion and thought was confusing her and left her vulnerable to its persuasions.

'_It_.' She thought as she kicked the door in, the old wood splintering. '_What is it?_' She had her gun in hand as she made her way through the atrium. What was it inside her head, this thing that knew her, that was her? Yes, she could not deny that it was herself, but it thought so differently, obeyed so readily and was taking over completely. She could see the changes in herself occurring and she watched with horrified curiosity as her own personality was slowly being erased. Only to be replaced again, by herself.

Elise strode through the main foyer, ignoring the splendour of the chateau as she headed for the party-goers. She could hear the music now and she understood why no-one had come to inspect the sound of her crashing into the house. As she passed the atrium doorway she pressed a LAM onto the wall beside it. She tried to halt her movement, to reach back and tear the LAM from the wall but her legs were already carrying her away. Elise hissed furiously and grit her teeth as she slinked across the foyer to the front doors. She grabbed another LAM from the pouch on her belt and this time hesitated before she could place it near the doors. Her hand wavered in the air for a second before the LAM was slammed into place with finality. Again she was moving, creeping ever closer to the living area and the people.

She had counted thirteen in total through the window and she had marked her primary target, Nicolette DuClare. Infallibly her hand located an EMP grenade on her belt and she rolled it into the room. The grenade flashed and plunged the room into darkness as the music came to a halt. There was a moment of silence as her prey considered what had caused the black out and then the air was filled with nervous laughter. She moved easily into the room, her vision unimpaired as she killed her first victim. There was enough light spilling into the room from the foyer that the guests could make out grey shapes falling, as they heard a quiet moan or the gurgle of blood-filled lungs. Panic gripped them and they pressed like frightened animals to get through the doorway. Elise winced as she heard the LAM by the front doors explode followed by the agonised screams of those who had been killed or wounded. She busied herself with those that remained in the room and two small figures huddled under the window caught her attention.

_'Please no…'_ Elise tried to stop moving toward them. _'Not children, please.' _They could not have been more than eight years old. They were adorable with their large, wondering eyes, clutching at each other in fear as she loomed over them.

"Non, mes bébés!" They're mother ran to protect them. Elise caught her by the throat and crushed her windpipe.

"Mama!" The little ones cried as they ran to embrace her falling corpse. Elise regarded them impassively, a single bullet each for their precious little heads. The second LAM was triggered and Elise almost missed the sound of a shotgun being cocked. She dove behind a couch, barely avoiding the spray of buckshot. Her assailant ran from the room and she caught him in the leg as she fired from behind the couch. She surveyed the living area to be sure she had missed no-one and then hurried into the foyer to catch the gunman. The stench of burnt wood and flesh hung heavy in the air. A man was moaning as he tried to drag himself through the atrium, it was hard to get anywhere with both his legs shredded by shrapnel.

"Please, mercy. Mercy!" He begged as she pushed her pistol against the back of his head, she could smell his fear. Elise gave a short laugh as she pulled the trigger to silence him. She could hear people thumping around above her and she made her way to the stairs spotting a trail of blood running up them. She dropped the spent clip from her gun as she began vaulting up to the first floor. She paused as she slipped the new clip into the pistol, listening for the two escapees. Charging back down the stairs she silently made her way through the dining room and into the kitchen, her ears straining to hear if anyone was trying to sneak back down the stairs and out the front door. Elise jumped up onto the kitchen counter and waited patiently.

Soon enough she heard the rumble of the dumb-waiter as it descended to the kitchen. She smirked gleefully as it came to a stop, pressing her body even closer to the wall beside it. The people inside slowly began to creep out, trying to be as quiet as possible, but she could easily hear their panicked breathing. One of them was sobbing quietly. The woman crawled out first, teetering on the heels of her boots as she tried to regain her balance. Elise lined her gun up with the tattoo etched onto the pale skin of her back, but did not fire. The second person clambered out of the dumb-waiter, clutching at his bloody leg. Nicolette turned to lend him a hand, her mascara streaked down her face. She screamed when she saw Elise poised above them, and then again as the bullet exploded through Chad's face, spraying her with blood. Elise waited until she fell silent, regarding Nicolette as the girl trembled, frozen to the spot. Elise cocked her head to the side and Nicolette bared her teeth at her as Elise squeezed the trigger. Nicolette's body remained standing for a moment as her head rocked back and slammed forward again as she collapsed next to Chad.

_"Excellent work. I think we shall have no trouble eliminating Tong now."_ Morgan was pleased with her.

_"Yes father, he shall be mine this time."_ Elise replied as she holstered her pistol. She strolled casually out of the kitchen, smoothing her clothes out where they had been unsettled in the fray and checking that all her gear was still secured to her body. She had been a fool to doubt Morgan, she would not disappoint him again.

_'I am not you!'_ The little voice shrieked inside her, but she dismissed it in the same way one swats an insect. She danced around the foyer as she avoided stepping into the mess of body parts, glass, wood and blood as she made her way to the ruined front entry.

_'Yes…'_ Elise thought eagerly as she returned to the dark night. _'None shall stand against me.'_


	8. Vienna

Toby Atanwe could not believe what he was reading.

'Meutre!' shouted the news headline, Murder at the Chateau DuClare. He had known that Everett was sending Elise there, but he had not expected this. He stared in horror at the pictures, at the names of those killed. He screwed the paper up in his hands as he made his way to Everett's lab, this was too much.

"Did you order this?" Toby demanded of Everett as his employer turned to regard him with an indulgent smile. Toby waved the paper in front of his face and Everett took it from him, placing it on the counter and smoothing out the creases Toby had put into it.

"The caretaker of the Chateau arrived yesterday morning, expecting to find the remains of one of young Nicolette's wild parties. Instead she discovered the smouldering remains of the partygoers themselves." Everett read from the paper, his face an impassive mask. "Hardened police officers were seen to break down at the discovery of two small children, still clutching tightly to their mother…" Toby looked at Everett expectantly, waiting for an explanation. Everett merely leant back against the bench, paper in hand, staring at Toby in his customary aloof manner.

"Don't you have anything to say? How could you have let her kill children? What threat are they to you!" Toby was livid; he wanted to wipe that cool look off Everett's face.

"We are fighting a war Toby, sometimes innocents get hurt. The end justifies the means." Everett tossed the paper into a nearby bin. Atanwe could not believe what he was hearing. All throughout his service for Everett he had been told that they were working to protect the people, the innocents, to defend and care for those that were incapable of defending themselves. Yes occasionally he himself had performed tasks that were morally questionable, but never this! Something had changed Everett, he knew that now. Something had changed for the worse.

"Do you doubt our cause Toby?" Everett's eyes pierced him, searched him for signs of treachery. Toby did his best to hide his doubts and fears, but Everett had always managed to read him so easily. Toby knew that if Everett had the slightest doubts about him he would be next on Elise's hit list.

"Of course not Mr Everett, sir. I just thought that the children were a step too far." He tried his hardest not to stammer.

"You may be right. Indeed you are right. It shall not happen again." Everett smiled at him reassuringly, but it chilled Toby to his core. "But we have work to do now. I have sent Elise to Hong Kong and this time she will kill Tong. And then my friend the world will be ours." Everett turned his back to Toby and he took his cue to leave. "Toby, please remain here in my apartment until Elise gets back. I need you to change the locks on the helipad door."

"Yes Mr Everett, I will see to it immediately." Toby hurried out of the lab. There was no way known that he was going to be staying in Paris. As much as Toby might rationalise his reasons for abandoning Everett, believing himself to be working for the greater good, they were simply personal motives. Toby had devoted most of his life to Everett and this was his reward. To be demoted to a locksmith, his position usurped by that bothersome nano-aug. And if Everett would go to such lengths to kill those who opposed him, what would he do to the man whose services he no longer required? A man that knew too much about Everett.

'No.' Toby decided, he was not going to end up like those butchered corpses at the DuClare Chateau. It was time for him to seek greener pastures elsewhere.

Everett watched Toby on the security monitor, watched him hurry out of the apartment and straight to the airport most certainly. A smug smile spread on his lips, everything was going so perfectly.

* * *

Tong strolled through his extensive laboratory, the light from the multiple terminals casting a shadow across his scarred features. He had just come from the Comm Room, he had been watching the Denton's and their trouble with the New York authorities. They would handle it in the usual manner; he was not concerned for them. 

_'_Dowd is dead.' He mused. He had lost his source of information on the Esau project, where now could he turn? Lost in thought as he sat down at his own personal terminal in the control room he almost didn't notice the flashing alert on the computer screen.

'New mail?' He opened it. 'From Filben, of course!' Harley Filben had worked for Dowd, and now he wanted to meet in Vienna. He claimed to have urgent information regarding Esau. Tong could barely contain his excitement; this was a fortunate stroke of luck. Dowd must have left details on the Esau project in the care of Filben in case of his demise. He had to get to Vienna immediately.

"Mr Tong, sir?" The intercom buzzed, it was Gordon from the front entry.

"What is it Quick?" Tong snapped.

"I have a man here who says he must speak with you." Tong could vaguely hear someone talking excitedly next to Gordon, but could not make out the words.

"He'll have to wait, I'm in a hurry."

"He says it's urgent." Tong sighed. Why now of all times?

"Does he have a name?"

"He claims to be a Toby Atanwe."

"Atanwe?" Tong gasped. Everett's own lackey, the day was becoming even more surprising than he could ever have thought possible. "Secure him and bring him down to me."

Moments later a bound and thoroughly searched Atanwe was brought before Tracer.

"Thank you Tong!" Toby exclaimed the minute he saw Tracer. He was desperate to ingratiate himself with Tong as soon as possible, but he had been even more desperate to get off the streets and into the safety of the compound. "I thought for sure she would have killed me."

"Who are you talking about?" All Tong could think about was Vienna, he had no time for this.

"Elise, she's here in Hong Kong. Mr Everett," It would take a while for Toby to break the habit of referring to Everett so deferentially, "sent her here to kill you. She's probably watching the compound at this very minute. I thought she would surely kill me if she saw me here."

"This is excellent news!" Tong exclaimed. "If she's looking for me here it will be so much easier for me to leave."

"Leave? I don't think that's a good idea. If you're out in the open it will be easier for her to get you. She may even wait and hunt you to your destination, where were you going?" Toby seemed in earnest fear for Tong's safety, but Tong was highly suspicious. What if Everett had sent him here on purpose? Had Everett learned of the rendezvous with Filben, and was he seeking the location?

"Gordon, you will keep Mr Atanwe safely secured here until I return." In other words, Toby would be kept locked away and under close guard.

"Yes sir. What if this Elise does break into the compound again?"

"She's after me, you and your men will stay out of her way, when she discovers I am not here she should hopefully leave you in peace and try to track me down."

"Yes Sir."

"I highly recommend you stay here Tong."

"There are less obvious paths for getting in and out of this compound Mr Atanwe, fear not." With a nod to Gordon, Atanwe was dragged away to a holding cell. At first he struggled but after a while he gave in, realising that at least they weren't throwing him back onto the street to be hunted down by Elise Everett.

Tong turned back to the message from Filben. There was no way he could verify it as coming from Harley. It definitely originated in Vienna that much he was able to determine. Going into the open was a great risk he knew, but even greater was the risk of losing the information that Filben might have. Tong would have liked to wait until the Denton's had returned but Filben was in fear of being discovered by Everett and ending the same way as his boss Dowd. So there was no time to lose.

Tong informed one of his aides that he was departing for Vienna, in all likelihood to return within the next three days. He went to his quarters and quickly packed a small travel satchel, deciding at the last minute to add a pistol to his sparse belongings.

By the time he got back to the labs Gordon had already made arrangements for smuggling Tong out of the compound. Several crates of supplies, being delivered to one of their warehouses had been arranged, with a single empty one for Tong. Tong crawled inside and prayed that if Elise were watching she wouldn't think to use her IR scanning on the crates. It was an uncomfortable ride for Tong but eventually they reached the warehouse and Tong was set free. The helicopter was ready and waiting for him on the helipad near the warehouses. He jumped in as Gordon wished him luck and soon Hong Kong was just a bright spot in the distance. He chatted idly to the pilot, taking the time to relax, since he rarely ever had the chance.

It seemed like barely any time had passed and they were above Vienna. Tong had never been to the city before and he was in awe of the architecture and grandeur of it. The early morning light lit the city with a soft glow. The chopper set down in a relatively unpopulated area and Tong did not even pause to watch it take off again. He wandered the streets in search of a hotel, the first thing he needed to do what gain access to a terminal and let Filben know that he was in Vienna. At length he found a fairly cheap, inconspicuous hotel and rented a room, making sure it had a computer. He ignored the stained walls and the unpleasant musty odour, having eyes only for the worn terminal, precariously balanced on a rotting table in one corner of the cramped room. Tong tossed his satchel onto the rat mangled mattress that passed for a bed and sat carefully on the rickety chair before the computer.

Tong hesitated before sending his message. He was still uncertain as to whether this was some kind of a trap. But in the end it was just too important an opportunity to pass up. He needed that information. He paced the room as he waited anxiously for a reply from Filben, not caring to sit on either the chair or the bed. He pounced upon the terminal when he saw the new email appear. Filben had set a time and place for the meeting. Tong did some quick research to locate the rendezvous point in relation to his current position. He deleted the message from the computer and grabbed his satchel, abandoning the filthy hotel. He felt weary but he much preferred to pass the time until the meeting taking in the sights of the city.

After what seemed an eternity of waiting Tong stood before the monument to Mozart in the Burggarten in Vienna. 2200 hrs, the appointed time of the rendezvous. Tong scanned the park, seeing the occasional couple strolling along in the dark, but no sign of Filben. At 2210hrs a paranoid itch started in the back of his mind and Tong realised that he may have made a mistake. That was when he spotted JC Denton running toward him with all haste.

'A fatal mistake.' Thought Tong grimly.


	9. Eine Kleine Nachtmusik

Elise slinked across the roof of the Hofburg building in Vienna, leaning against the roof ledge as she set down her kit bag. She busied herself with assembling her rifle as she glanced around the park, looking for Tong. Presently he arrived, walking across the park toward the Mozart Monument.

'Right on time.' She smirked. Everett had been right, Tong could just not resist the lure of information, and it would be his final undoing. She snapped the last few pieces of her rifle together and loaded it, bringing the stock to her shoulder as she turned to find her target. Elise blinked, Tong had disappeared. She switched to sonar imaging and grinned again, she could clearly see him standing on the opposite side of the monument. All she had to do was wait until he moved. He seemed to be pacing nervously and she kept the rifle tracked on him, waiting for him to move into clear space. Suddenly Tong stopped pacing, turning to look at the end of the park, she followed his line of sight and cursed in surprise.

'JC Denton!' What was he doing here. She turned Tong out of her sights and aimed instead at JC. Tong could wait, this was too good an opportunity to pass up. She rest her finger lightly on the trigger, exhaling slowly as she prepared to fire. Elise heard someone creeping up on her from behind and she swung around, only to meet with Paul Denton's fist. Her head rocked back as he connected with her jaw and she stumbled back against the ledge. She kicked out blindly and hissed in frustration when he easily caught hold of her leg. He twisted it, trying to force her onto her stomach but she wrenched her leg backward, pulling him off balance. Wanting to keep his distance Paul pushed on her foot, trying to counter his forward momentum. The next thing Elise knew, she had fallen backwards over the ledge. She grasped desperately at a window sill halfway down; grunting in surprise as the sudden weight nearly pulled her arm out of the socket. She looked up to see Paul regarding her with surprise and concern. Clearly he had not planned to send her plummeting to her death; unfortunately for him she held no such sentiment.

'Just as soon as I get down from here.' Elise thought ominously. That was when the ancient masonry of the window sill crumbled and once again Elise was falling. The stone pavement rushed toward her and she landed awkwardly on her side, the air exploding from her lungs. She lay there for a moment or two, trying to subdue the sudden pain that swept over her body. Slowly she stood up, amazed that she had sustained no major injuries. It hurt to breathe, but at least she could still move, although her body painfully throbbed all over at the slightest motion. Lightning flashes of pain streaked down her back and into her legs. She stumbled on her feet, nausea washing over her as the nerves in the back of her legs and pelvis tingled numbly. She hunched over, her hands resting on her knees, head bowed forward as she tried to calm her breathing, to fight the nausea.

'Just you wait Paul Denton.' She thought through the red haze of her pain, she would see him begging for the release of death before the night was over. She caught movement in the corner of her eye and she turned to regard JC as he ran toward her, pistol in hand. She fixed him with a glare that could turn a lesser man to stone as she flicked a LAM in his direction. He scrambled frantically to get clear of the blast zone and Elise quickly scanned the park for Tong. He was no where in sight and she roared in pain and frustration as she opened fire on JC, pinning him behind one of the archways of the Hofburg building. She sprinted across the park, a little awkwardly at first but as the adrenaline begand tp pump through her body it dulled her pain receptors.

JC returned fire and she could feel the bullets hissing past her as she skidded to the ground, behind a low garden wall for cover. She poked her head above the wall, seeing him running toward her and she fired again, but he dodged too quickly. Elise dropped her head to the ground and not a moment too soon as a section of the wall above her shattered, cement and dust falling onto her. She scrambled backward, staying low and lobbed another grenade in the general direction of where she assumed JC to be. As the explosion rocked the park she jumped to her feet and sprinted into a small copse of trees. She glanced behind only long enough to see that both JC and Paul were now giving chase.

As she reached the edge of the park she pressed herself behind the wall of the first building she came past, getting off a couple of rounds and forcing the Denton's to scatter wildly. Then she was off again, ignoring their return fire which tore into the side of the building. A running gun fight was not Elise's ideal way to deal with the Denton's, they could probably run in circles around the city for hours and she wouldn't be any closer to killing them. But she might eventually succumb to the pain in her body, so she needed to finish this quickly. Elise thought she could hear music and the buzz of voices in the distance and she headed directly for the source of the noise. Another quick glance over her shoulder only proved what she feared; the Denton's were catching up to her.

She rounded a corner and slammed straight through the bodies in her way as she reached the open air market. It was surprisingly busy this late at night and Elise felt a surge of hope, she could easily lose the Denton's here. She muscled her way through the crowd, wishing that people had the sense to get out of her way, but she supposed that would draw too much attention to herself. She lost herself in the swarm of shoppers and street performers, rushing without a glance past the hawking vendors. She was deep within the throng when she lurched over in pain her knees turning to jelly as she fell against a bystander, caught in a fit of coughing. The fit subsided and her ragged breathing regained some semblance of normality. When she pulled her hand away from her mouth it was spattered with foamy, bright red blood.

"Fantastic." She croaked. The bystander, having seen the blood, caught hold of her.

"Miss, are you alright? Someone help, we need an ambulance!" She pulled away from him and her coat slipped back to reveal her array of weapons. The crowd that had gathered around her slowly pulled back in an ever widening circle. This was just the attention she didn't need. Further back in the market she heard a woman exclaim as she was pushed roughly aside. Other angry mutters followed and she knew the Denton's were forcing their way through the crowd directly toward her. Elise rushed to the edge of the circle turning at the last second to draw her pistol and she shot the helpful bystander square between his eyes. The effect was instant as the crowd ran in panic to get away, screams of terror echoing through the market. The way before her cleared and the majority of people ran in the opposite direction, back toward the Denton's.

As soon as she broke free of the market she started running, her speed augmentation kicking in as she flashed away from the Denton's. She only managed to get a few blocks when she slipped to her knees, grazing her hands as she fell. More blood was heaved up from her lungs and she spat it onto the paved roadway. Her breathing was shallow and came out in a gurgling wheeze. She forced herself back to her feet, fighting the light-headedness that was clouding her thinking. Elise set off at a trot, not daring to run full pelt, not that she needed to. She had put enough distance between herself and the Denton's and escape was not on her mind. She finally reached an intersection and she went to the left, staggering down the narrow street. She passed several alleys that might have suited her purpose, but she wanted to split the Denton's up as much as possible. No matter how much she made one of them scream, she had to be sure the other would never hear it.

At length she felt she had gone far enough and she stumbled into a tight alley between two decrepit buildings. She leant back against the wall, closing her eyes and waiting for the tell-tale footfalls of a Denton in hot pursuit. She took the time to relax her aching muscles, trying to regain control of the pain that coursed through her, to regulate her breathing. It was hard with only one working lung.

_"I hope you die!"_ Elise sighed softly, she was wondering where the little voice had gone to.

_"Not tonight bitch."_ She answered back, giving it the mental equivalent of a sharp slap. She could feel it's burning rage, like a tiny, bright spark. She had to admire the tenacity of her former self. She felt the coolness of the ancient stone at her back and she opened her ears to the sounds of the city. A lot of it was similar no matter where you went, human voices, the wind stirring through the city, the constant hum of machinery. And yet in the combination of these sounds there was something that made every city unique and different. Not far from her a couple of alley cats were fighting, their inhuman yowling disrupting her sense of peaceful calm.

She pushed away from the wall, she shouldn't get too relaxed. Elise stretched her cramping muscles out, she only had to wait a little longer, and presently she would be able to rest. She whispered to her bruised body.

"Soon." She promised. Elise heard his feet slapping on the stone and her eyes snapped open, glinting in the darkness. She waited until he had passed her and she leapt out behind him, her foot digging into his lower back as he stopped to turn. He stumbled forward, twisting to face her with a baton in his hand.

'JC, what a delight.' She thought as she closed on him, easily ducking out of range of his weapon and returning in a flash to strike him in the face and the stomach. 'What chance does he have? When I can read him like a book.' Every action she could anticipate and her neural networks were in a frenzy to interpret the slightest shift in his body and to send the counteracting commands to her own limbs. Futilely he attempted to retaliate, as she danced around him; a quick jab here, a hard thrust there as she watched his frustration mounting. This time as he swung wildly with the baton, she caught hold of his wrist, twisting his arm inward as she stepped behind him, bringing his arm with her. A quick kick to the back of his knees and he fell to the ground hard as she pushed his palm upward, toward his wrist, crowing in triumph when he grunted in pain. Elise's slender fingers dug mercilessly into the nerves of his hand as she wrenched the baton free.

She released him and he spun on his knees, trying to get back to his feet in the process. But she met him with a backhand and his head rocked to the side while she followed up with the baton, whipping it against the curve between his neck and collarbone. Before he even had a chance to think of his next move her foot slammed into his groin and he fell forward in shock. She kicked his ribs, satisfied to hear them crack and she brought the baton down hard across his shoulder blades and again across his lumbar region.

"Pathetic." She muttered as she stalked around him, thinking of the best way to cause more pain. She watched him writhing on the ground. Where was the control, the dedication to the cause? She kicked him again, her mocking laugh a moist cackle as she wiped absently at the blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. Elise stopped circling him as she paused to gasp for air. She was feeling light-headed again; perhaps she would not be able to draw this out as she wished. Her knees felt weak and she could feel the nausea returning.

'Not yet, not yet!' She fought relentlessly as her body was shrieking for rest, for oxygen, but she moved in for the kill. She kicked JC onto his back; she wanted him to see her when he died. She shook her head to clear her blurring vision and thought she heard someone talking to her. Someone _was_ talking to her and she turned to see Paul Denton.

'How on earth did he find us?' She coughed wetly as the baton fell from her numb fingers. She felt strangely indignant, thinking it was most rude of him to interrupt her at this point in time. He crept slowly toward her, obviously stalling as he thought of a way to defeat her. Elise was confident that no amount of time would save him and a bubbling hiss escaped her throat as she circled closer to him. No matter what advantage he thought he might have, she knew hers could beat it. She knew for a fact that they would go to great lengths to avoid killing her. She on the other had would stop at nothing to kill them.

He took a step forward and she tried to anticipate what came next. It looked like he was leaning toward the left and she shifted her body unnoticeably, ready if an attack came from that direction. He took another step forward and still she waited, watching him intently. And then he launched his entire body at her. Her eyes went wide with surprise as she was knocked to the ground. It was an unexpected move; she had not thought he would want to get this close to her. Elise's head thumped onto the stones and her broken ribs pushed painfully into her lung as his weight came crashing down on top of her. For a frantic moment she felt as though she couldn't breathe at all. She squirmed under him, pushing one of her legs free and bringing her heel down onto his calf as he tried to catch her hands in his own.

He grunted at the sudden pain and she bucked him off, jabbing her fingers upward underneath his ribs, pushing him further away. She rolled away from him, the momentum carrying her to her feet. But he was already up and his fist cracked into her face, his other hand digging into her stomach. Elise spat blood at him, throwing him off long enough for her to level a punch at his head, but he caught her wrist. She tried to strike him with her other hand, but that too was captured by him. She kicked out frantically, but he turned his body slightly, having learned from their first encounter to guard his crotch.

"We've been here before Elise." He whispered calmly, his blue eyes piercing her as she tried every trick she knew to wriggle free from his grasp. She felt a cold chill run down her spine.

_"I would not have underestimated him." _Elise bared her teeth and snarled like a wild-cat, this was not the time to be taking lip from that irritating little voice in her head. Paul rocked his head forward into hers and her already dim vision started to fade out. She tried one last effort to pull away and he went with her, slamming her body against the wall. Elise let out a desperate little grunt of pain as she slid to the ground.

"Ah, crap." She muttered, coughing more blood. She turned her face up to see him towering over her before her eyelids fluttered closed, her body welcoming the chance to rest. But the little voice just had to have the last word.

_"I said you would die."_


	10. Lab Rat

She awoke with a start in a small dank cell. It wasn't really a cell, it was an old storage room, but it had been converted, with a small bunk secured firmly to the floor. A single light was fixed into the ceiling, covered with a grill. She stared directly into the light, letting it flood her bleary vision. She breathed in the cold, stale air, trying to garnish as much information as possible via her senses. Elise put a hand to her ribs in surprise; it didn't hurt to breathe any more. She rubbed absently at her midriff as she looked down to assess her current state. Her coat was gone, and all her weapons. They'd even taken her light flak jacket and she was left only with a sleeveless vest. Fortunately her pants seemed to have been unmolested. Her eyes moved slowly downward and she blinked at her bare feet.

"Bastards stole my boots." She muttered as she rolled off the bunk, her feet cringing from the contact with the cold cement slab. She found her boots tucked under one end of the bunk, but her knives were gone of course. She stamped her feet back into her boots and stretched her muscles out as she walked to the small metal door at the end of the cell. There was the tiniest of windows in the centre of it and she tried to peer out, to see where she was. But it was no use; all she could see was the opposite wall, a dull grey length of cement. She spun back around into the cell, her eyes scanning frantically. There had to be a camera in here somewhere. They were probably watching her at this very instant, who 'they' were she wasn't entirely sure, but she assumed the Denton's brothers were near at the very least. How else would she have gotten here? The last thing she remembered was Paul standing over her as she passed out. Smouldering anger began to bubble up inside her as she recalled the events in Vienna. Elise collapsed back onto the bunk, pulling her legs up one at a time as she yanked on the laces of her boots. They nearly snapped off as she vented her frustration with the Denton's on her poor, helpless laces.

The little voice started chuckling quietly and Elise felt her rage flashing white-hot. It was mocking her defeat; she of all people was taunting her. She grumbled low in her throat trying to ignore the voice as it grew into a steady cackle, laughing outright at her failure and rage.

"Shutup, shutup!" She shouted, clutching at her head with her hands, trying to squeeze the little voice and it's mocking laughter out of her head. "Why won't you just die!" She roared, wanting to hit something but still maintaining enough of her rational mind to think better of slamming her fist into the solid walls around her.

'_You first._' The voice retorted still chuckling, but it finally fell silent, sated for the moment.

All she could hear in the cell was the sound of her own sharp breathing. She sat back down on the bunk and pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. Although it was a small room, it still wasn't close enough to give her comfort. She scrambled off the bunk and slithered underneath it. It was cold against the floor but she didn't care, it was dark and tight and she immediately felt at ease. Her eyes were becoming heavy when she heard the door scrape open, feet stamping heavily into the cell. She turned her head enough so that she could watch them with her eyes, two pairs of identical combat boots. It was almost cute, as though their Mummy dressed them the same each morning.

"Are you going to come out?" One of them asked. It was definitely Paul, JC's voice had a huskier quality to it. She swung her leg out and they jumped back at her sudden attack. She could hear JC muttering something under his breath and Paul trying to hold him off.

"I'd rather not have to sedate you." Paul again. She doubted JC would want to speak to her after the beating she gave him. She couldn't suppress the cruel grin that spread across her features and she licked her lips, as though she could still taste his pain.

'Perhaps I should go along…I will kill them!' She didn't even blink at the sudden suppression of her thought processes. Morgan's final commands to her were still in place and she could not disobey them. She slowly slid out from under the bunk as the Denton's eyed her warily; Paul had a dart gun at the ready. She was grateful for her lack of height as it automatically lulled people into a false sense of confidence. She noted in the corner of her eye that the cell door was wide open. They were overly-confident she thought as she smirked inwardly. Paul motioned with his gun that she should move in front of them and she started to turn complacently.

Her hand snapped back, knocking Paul's gun to the floor with a clatter as the same hand flicked up at his throat. Simultaneously she kicked out at JC's knee, grinning triumphantly as the joint bent inwards. She spun again to take care of Paul who she saw as the bigger threat and his fist slammed into her. The force of his strength enhanced blow knocked her back into JC and they both tumbled to the floor. JC tried to wrap his arms around her, to keep her pinned on top of him and she blindly snapped her head back against his while digging into his ribs with an elbow. She scrambled free of his grasp, ready to launch herself at Paul when she felt something bite her thigh. She looked down at the tranquiliser dart and brushed at it absently as she stepped toward Paul. He fired another dart into her chest and she grunted as she fought to stay upright. It was no good; her feral hatred alone could not resist two tranquilisers. She landed on the floor hard, still trying to claw her way toward Paul.

"Whose brilliant idea was this again?" She heard JC grumble sarcastically as she faded out to the sound of mocking laughter.

* * *

Elise woke slowly to the hum and bleep of medical equipment. She was staring directly at the ceiling and her first reaction was to spring to her feet but she found that she was strapped tightly to a med-table.

"Awake at last Sleeping Beauty." Toby announced from the doorway. He strode to the side of the table and smirked down at her. "I told them to make the bindings extra tight."

"Toby untie me." She commanded, even in this helpless position she would never plead for anything. "Help me and Morgan and I would be willing to overlook your recent…transgressions." He seemed to consider her offer.

"With the Denton's out of Hong Kong I have no doubt you'd clean out the compound in minutes." He stepped closer and her arms twitched against her restraints expectantly. "I also have no doubt that I'd be your first victim." He smirked again.

"Get out of my sight traitor." She snarled at him. He laughed outright in response.

"You're in no position to be making demands Elise."

"So how is it that they are letting you roam freely?" Tong was an even greater fool than she had originally thought if he put any trust in Atanwe.

"Let's just say I've been very forthcoming with all I know about you and Everett. Plus I tried to convince Tong to not go to Vienna. That put me in a good light considering recent events." Toby sneered at her, revelling in his triumph over the woman that had replaced him in Everett's plans.

"Morgan and I know how paranoid Tong is. The chances of him going to Vienna were slight." Her eyes sparkled with glee. "Until you turned up, fearing for your life and insisting that I was in Hong Kong. As we suspected it convinced Tong that the rendezvous in Vienna wasn't a trap." Now it was Elise's turn to smirk. Tied down and virtually helpless she could still intimidate Toby. "You misinformed him just as you were meant to puppet. I wonder what Tong would think about that…"

She left the open threat hanging and Toby glared at her. They both knew that it would not take much to make Tong suspicious of Toby, considering his previous alliances. Elise would take great delight in destroying Toby's chances for gaining Tong's complete trust. The man would be lost without someone to hold his leash. He wasn't smart enough to become a player in world politics himself, he was a born lackey and needed direction.

"Of course, you could always untie me…" She suggested smugly observing the inner conflict that played clearly on his features. His choices were pretty grim, leave her there and ruin his chance of starting a new career. Or let her go and possibly die anyway. He was spared the decision however as Tong entered the lab.

"She's awake at last then?" The short, grizzled Tong asked as he approached the table. Toby stood frozen in place, it was too late now to let Elise go and take his chances. His eyes scanned the room frantically for a weapon; maybe he could kill her before she said anything. His fears were unfounded however, for the minute Elise's gaze fell upon Tong, Everett's commands kicked in. Her hands clenched furiously, the knuckles turning white and she fought against the bonds holding her down. Her arms trembled from the tension in her muscles as her nails dugs into her palms, drawing blood.

At first both Tong and Toby seemed oblivious to her sudden reaction and Tong babbled on, unaware of the loathing that emanated from her.

"You are most remarkable young Elise. I knew Everett was quite brilliant but you overwhelm all my expectations. Everett is quite a craftsman." Elise was not even listening to anything he said. She simply glared at him as he fiddled with the control panel near the med-table. She could clearly visualise her hands snapping his neck, or tearing out his throat, but the inability to do so caused her immeasurable anguish. There was a great throbbing pain in her head which she instinctively knew related to her inability to kill Tong. When he was dead the pain would stop, she hated him and it was his fault that she was hurting.

"See here Toby, embedded just above the cerebellum." Tong indicated a point on the screen before him. It was a clear image of Elise's brain and he was pointing at a dark speck deep in her brain. "And here there are filaments that branch off into motor control, sensory input and the like." He pointed out several thin lines that radiated out into her brain.

"It could possibly explain the fast reflexes. I'm not entirely sure of its function yet, but I'm convinced it's somehow responsible for the erratic behaviour we've observed." Tong's fingers tapped against the keyboard. "I'm not sure how Everett got it in there, but I know I cannot remove it. I think I can shut it down, but I don't know what that would do."

"Elise…" Tong began, turning from the screen for the first time. "I believe this device has some control over your thought processes. Is there anything you can tell us about it?"

Elise was still pulling furiously against the restraints and she growled in frustration.

"Don't waste your lies on me. I will kill you!" Her voice had taken on a hysterical tone as she arched her body off the table. Her relentless fighting against the bonds had begun to tear at her exposed skin, drawing blood. She seemed oblivious to the pain.

Tong took a step back from her, horrified by her manic behaviour. "I just want to help you." Elise's only response was an anguished grunt.

"My suggestion would be to put her down, like the rabid animal she is." Here was Toby's chance to be rid of this most irritating thorn. Tong just shook his head, turning back to his computer.

There was a crackle of static in Elise's head, the info-link. She could faintly hear a garbled message from Everett. Eventually the line became clear as Everett managed to bypass whatever dampening measures Tong had erected.

'_Elise, I see now why I have not heard from you._'

"You can speak to me Everett." Tong had managed to hack into her info-link and Morgan grumbled at the intrusion.

"You should not have interfered in matters that do not concern you Tong."

"And what will you do Everett? I have your assassin bound quite tightly and soon I will figure out how to disable your control over her."

"That is only a minor setback Tong."

"I will kill him!" Elise shrieked. She would not give up, she would not fail. Morgan sighed in disgust.

"I see now where I have made errors. This is most disappointing." Morgan abruptly severed the link but Tong was monitoring Elise's brain scan with increasing interest.

"Wait…there's something. Oh my god!" He raced frantically to shut down the chip in Elise's brain as her anguished cry echoed through the underground complex.

It was merely split seconds before she lapsed into unconsciousness with a groan of relief.

"What was that?" Toby asked confused.

"Everett's twisted version of a kill-switch." Tong uttered his jaw set in angry determination.

"Is she…?" Toby asked trying to look sombre although inside he was hoping she was dead.

"No, but who knows what damage has been done."

"So what do we do?"

"What else can we do?" Tong sighed in resignation. "We wait."


	11. Define Humanity

Again she awoke to the sight of a dull white ceiling. She sighed inwardly; it would be nice to pass through one day without getting knocked unconscious. She lifted her head and saw that they had guards posted inside the room now, even though she was still strapped down. Elise commended their caution; there was no telling what _she_ might do next.

Elise blinked as a sudden realisation dawned on her. She was controlling the movement of her head and the direction her eyes shifted. She was back in command and there were no thoughts or orders coming from the other one. She tested this using all the muscles in her body and she had total control, even down to wiggling her toes. She nearly laughed out loud in triumph.

'_I win bitch!'_ She thought gleefully. Elise wondered what had happened to eliminate the other consciousness that had recently taken up residence in her head. She thought back to what had happened over the last few days. It was mostly a swirl of darkness to her, only occasionally had she been able to break through the suppression in order to see what was happening. She remembered pain, a great deal of pain. Surely she ought to be able to remember everything that the other experienced. For although they were somehow separate identities, they had shared one brain, one set of memories. Yet it all seemed so hazy. Elise hoped that with time her memories would clear up.

The guards had called Tong the minute she had opened her eyes and now he walked cautiously into the room. She observed his reaction to her with mute surprise. She was securely tied down, what possible threat could she be? What had she done to put them so on edge? She had to change that as soon as possible, she needed to gain their trust. Otherwise she could spend the rest of her life tied up or locked in a cell somewhere.

"How are you feeling?" Tong asked as he came to stand over her, scrutinising her expression.

"Despite a minor headache not too bad actually." She kept her tone light even managing a slight smile. But this seemed to put Tong further on edge.

"You don't feel like killing me?" Tong had turned his attention halfway to a rank of monitors, no doubt displaying all sorts of readouts regarding her system. The question caught Elise by surprise.

"Uhhh…not really. No." She wished she could remember more of the events of the past week. What had that bitch been up to?

"Interesting." Was all that Tong replied. He seemed to have lost interest in her completely as his fingers flickered across the console. He made a curious noise in his throat but Elise could not read his expression. "Were you aware that Everett implanted some sort of device in your brain? Apart from the standard augmentations?" He asked at last.

"Yes! Or at least I came to suspect that he had. I'm not entirely sure of its nature." So she had been right about Morgan, he had completely betrayed her trust. "I suspect he's been using it to control me all along. At first it was of a subtle suggestive nature I never even realised it was there. I would just often feel of two minds about things. It was very confusing." Tong listened intently and nodded that she should continue.

"As mine and Morgan's beliefs began to diverge its presence became more violent, more assertive. The first clue I had that there was something controlling me was when Everett ordered me to kill JC. It used pain as a motivator and even gained some control of my motor skills." Speaking all of this out loud for the first time made Elise realise how far-fetched it sounded. Would Tong believe her? Perhaps she had only believed it so that she could forgive herself for murdering so many people. If she hadn't been in control it couldn't be her fault, could it?

"The Chateau was the first time it really took charge. I know this is going to sound crazy but it was like there was another version of myself inside my head." Elise chewed at her bottom lip as she tried to put what she had felt into words. "It was me and yet it wasn't. She was stronger than me and she took over completely. I remember very little of what passed after the Chateau Du Clare." She fell silent as she pondered it all.

"Do you feel her now?" Tong asked. Elise thought hard, trying to find any traces of the other in her mind and at length she shook her head.

"No. And believe me I don't miss her." She smiled ruefully and Tong even managed a short chuckle. "But it is strange that I do not want to kill you. My father ordered me to and yet…" Tong interrupted her suddenly.

"Wait, your father?"

"Yes. I am Elise Everett. Morgan Everett is my father." Tong seemed to find this news both surprising and disturbing. "I would not be surprised if you did not know that. Morgan had to keep my existence a secret for my own safety especially after my mother…my mother…" Elise knew that something had happened to her mother, something important and yet she could not recall what. "I'm sorry, it seems my memory loss is worse than I had suspected."

"What can you remember? What is your earliest memory?"

"I…I can remember that I _had_ memories of my childhood. Many memories. But when you asked me just now I cannot recall them." Her brow knit together in confusion as she tried hard to recall memories she knew she had. "Waking up in the lab in Paris, the operation was a success. I remember that." Tong acted as though he had suspected this all along. Before he could speak though she continued. "There is more, it's almost more like a dream than a memory. It's dark, I cannot see anything." She closed her eyes trying to place herself in similar situation to help the memory come to her. "It is warm though and confined and I feel safe." She shook her head uncertainly. "Maybe it is a dream."

Unexpectedly Tong reached over and undid the bindings that were holding her down.

"Uh, what are you doing?" She uttered in astonishment, believing the man has lost all of his senses.

"I no longer believe that you are a threat to us. Everett has no control over you anymore." He was confident in his statement and Elise only hoped he was right. No matter how normal she might feel she had no way of knowing when Everett, or the other Elise, might suddenly take control again. She pushed up into a sitting position on the med-table and rubbed at her wrists. She hadn't thought the binders were that tight but they had scraped the flesh off where they touched. She was going to slide to her feet when Tong held out a restraining hand.

"I recommend you remain sitting for what I'm about to tell you Elise."


	12. Revelations

Elise sat back, waiting for Tong to continue. She doubted he could have any news so shocking that she would need to sit down. Unless she had killed more people. A knot began to twist in her stomach. Who had she killed now?

"Elise you are not the daughter of Morgan Everett. There are no records of him ever having any children."

"Well of course there aren't!" Elise interrupted. "He had to protect me from his enemies." Tong held up a silencing hand.

"I know this won't be easy, but please hear me out." Elise fell silent and nodded for him to continue. Tong cleared his throat. "Your DNA doesn't even match his. But you were not adopted either." Tong turned to his computer, unable to watch the confusion on Elise's features. "I've done extensive scans of your physiology and you are an amazing construct. I have to grant it to Everett, he is truly an artist."

"Tong please! What are you talking about?" Elise couldn't handle the suspense. What was Tong trying to say? A construct?

"Elise every single thing about you has been fabricated by Morgan Everett. From your DNA to your memories. Using accelerated cell-growth he was able to produce you in a matter of months once he understood and perfected the process. I would estimate your actual age to be no more than seven months." Elise looked at him sceptically. "Clearly Everett wanted another augmented henchman similar to the Denton's. But this time he wanted to be able to control them better." Tong paused to look at Elise but she was silent, her expression unreadable. "You're not really suffering from memory loss; you never possessed those memories to begin with. They were constructed by Everett in an attempt to induce a sense of loyalty and obedience in you." Elise pursed her lips as she took in everything Tong told her. "No doubt he used the AI Morpheus to aid him, since Morpheus has spent a lot of time observing humans and their behaviour. He stored the memories on a chip that he implanted in your brain. The same chip he eventually used to control your motor functions and thought patterns."

"That makes no sense." Elise interjected at last. "Why bother with false memories if he could control me anyway?" Tong considered her question for a moment.

"I would imagine that he needed an agent that was capable of acting on their own, free-willed to an extent and free-thinking. Able to adapt to situations and not require constant monitoring. When he did completely over-ride your free will, that other persona was utterly incapable of free-thought, she could only follow commands to the letter, she was unable to adapt."

"This is all just so..." Elise struggled for words to explain how she felt. "Your saying that my personality, my whole life, everything I believe in, that it is all…what? All a lie?" She slipped off the med-table and hurried to the doorway.

"Elise, wait." Tong tried to hold her back, to calm her down. She shrugged him off easily.

"No, I don't want to hear anymore right now." She passed through the door and Tong followed after her. He went to the command centre to be sure she did not leave the compound. Satisfied that she was simply brooding and not intent on escape he turned his attention to the actions of the Denton's in Everett's lab in Paris.

* * *

Alex pushed himself away from the terminal; Tong could easily take care of things in the command centre. He stretched as he staggered from the room, his legs shaky, his back aching. He was spending far too much time sitting around. He wondered if one day he wouldn't be able to get up from his computer at all. Alex knew it wasn't necessary from him to be the one to watch the Denton's 24/7. The work could easily be shared around. But he wanted to be there, he lived vicariously through their info-links. It was the closest he would ever get to that kind of adrenaline pumping action. They were on their way to Moscow now, so he could take a break for a while. He stepped out into the open compound, breathing in the fresher air. He heard something rustle softly on the roof above him and he scrambled up a nearby stack of crates. He grasped the edge of the roof and heaved himself up, grunting at the effort. Elise was sitting, still as a statue except for the loose strands of hair that were whisked about by the evening breeze. She did not turn to look at him as he scrambled up beside her.

"What are you doing up here?" He asked as he settled himself a wary distance from her. She was silent and Alex sighed heavily, no-one ever wanted to talk to him.

"Just getting a different perspective." She suddenly uttered and Alex nearly jumped in surprise. "Just last month I was on the outside looking in." She waved her hand toward the outside of the compound and she muttered quietly. "It's funny how quickly things can change." She tilted her head toward the sky and Alex followed her line of sight.

"So much space, so much emptiness, no boundaries. It's terrifying if you think about it for too long. Don't you think?" She turned at last to look at him and again he was caught of guard. People rarely ever looked at him and certainly not with the intensity of her gaze.

"I've never thought about it much." He managed to stammer and was grateful when she turned her eyes from him. His hands picked nervously at his trousers. Tong had assured him that Elise was no longer a danger to any of them, but she still terrified him. How could Tong be so sure that she wouldn't just snap at any moment?

"I hated her you know. Which means I hated myself." Elise looked at her fists which she had clenched so tight the knuckles had turned white. "I do hate myself."

'Great.' Alex thought. 'She's still a nut-job. I'm alone, on a roof with an unpredictable psycho.' He wondered how quickly he could scramble off the roof if he had to.

"JC and Paul will always see in me the person that killed their friends." Her voice was choked with emotion and Alex immediately regretted his harsh thoughts. He could hardly expect her to be entirely normal after everything Everett had put her through. He tried to imagine how he would feel if he had just learned that his whole life was a lie. To have been used to murder, who knows how many, innocents.

"All those people." She closed her eyes to the pain.

"You had no choice." Alex didn't know what else to say, what _could_ he possibly say?

"That doesn't make it any easier. Do you have any idea what it is like, to wake up one day and find all your convictions gone? The belief that I was working for the greater good, that kept me going, allowed me to live with myself. But now I am left with nothing. Nothing but guilt." Her eyes flashed open and Alex could see a hardness in them as her mouth twisted angrily. "Guilt and rage."

The sudden fury in her voice had Alex wondering how quickly he could get off the roof again.

"Yes, well I'd better go check what's happening in the control room. Paul and JC are on their way to Moscow." Elise caught hold of Alex's arm as he tried to move away. He gulped nervously as he looked back at her.

"Why Moscow?"

"Well they found an email on Everett's computer in Paris. He cleaned the place out but it looks like he missed this." Alex shrugged and let his breath go as Elise took her hand off his arm.

"Hmmm, it's not like him to be so sloppy." Elise's eyes slitted with suspicion.

"Well, he was in a hurry."

"I suppose." Elise seemed deep in thought and Alex was about to leave when she continued. "In any case, if Morgan is in Moscow, then that's where I'm going." She moved so quickly that Alex fell backwards. She launched herself off the roof and Alex scrambled to the edge, throwing his head over and yelled after her.

"I don't think Tong will agree to that!" Elise halted and looked up at him calmly. The briefest of grins twitched on her lips.

"I'd like to see him try to stop me."


	13. Moscow

_"Head's up guys." _Jock fell silent at the controls as JC and Paul both stiffened slightly. He had learned by now that when they got that distant look in their eyes they were receiving Intel via their info-links, and it was best to be quiet. _"Elise is on her way to Moscow."_

"What!" JC growled turning to Paul, his anger clear. Paul held up a hand to silence his brother as Alex continued with the update.

_"We tried to reason with her, but there was no stopping her. There's a good chance she might make it to Everett before you do."_ Tong's voice replaced Alex's.

_"I'm sure you are aware how vital it is that we take Everett alive. Elise would not give me the time to try and repair her info-link, so I can't trace her. You must find Everett before she does!"_

"I know how to handle her." JC muttered as he patted his assault rifle possessively.

_"I don't want you to kill her, we need her! I believe you can reason with her, but she is still very fragile at this point in time, so go easy on her. She is no longer the Elise that you knew." _The info-link fell silent and Paul sighed wearily as he noted JC's hard-edged grimace.

"She still murdered all those people."

"Yes, but she had no choice." Paul tried to reason with JC, he was going to have enough trouble trying to rein Elise in, if they could even find her. He didn't want to have to try to keep JC under control as well. He felt the urge to point out to JC that they had both killed many more people than her, JC especially. But he knew it would be foolish to alienate JC at this point in time. However, they still had to try to get to Moscow first Paul realised.

"Hey Jock, can't this chopper go any faster?"

"Sure thing, hold on."

* * *

They crept slowly up the stairwell, weapons ready as they approached the top floor of the apartment building. If their information was correct, then Everett had set up his new lab in this building. Paul scanned the hallway before stepping out of the stairwell. JC followed him at a distance as they stretched out into the corridor. It was too well lit for Paul's liking; they easily stood out in the elaborately decorated building. Evening light spilled in through the floor to ceiling windows at the end of the corridor, casting long shadows behind them as they approached the apartment door. The door was fitted with only the barest level of security.

"It's not like Everett to have such poor security." JC mused; there was a strong itch inside his head, a sense that something wasn't right. The feeling had been growing steadily stronger. Although it was barely noticeable, he could tell from Paul's body language that he too felt the same uneasiness.

"You think the door could be trapped?" Paul asked him, his eyes flicking in scrutiny over the door and around the corridor.

"I think this whole thing could be a trap, now that you mention it."

"I've been thinking the same thing." Paul stepped slowly away from the door.

'But do we have a choice?' He thought to himself. Even knowing it might be a trap, they needed Everett, and so it was a risk they had to take.

The elevator at the end of the corridor chimed as the lights in the hallway cut out. JC and Paul spun to face the lift, their guns ready as they waited for the doors to open. The only light still came in through the windows to their backs. The lack of light did not bother the Denton's, but Paul preferred to be the one that cut the power. The doors of the elevator slid openly silently and Elise waltzed out. Paul let out a small sigh of relief. It was clear to him though that Elise was indeed bent on killing Everett, for she had thrown all caution aside. He and JC had taken the stairs to avoid heavy security, and yet she had obviously fought her way through them to reach the lift. As she drew near them Paul straightened from his crouching position, moving to block her route to the apartment door. JC fell in behind her and Paul prayed he did nothing foolish.

"We need Everett alive, Elise." Elise halted, maintaining some distance between herself and Paul. "We could use your help, but please, killing Everett won't change the past." Paul had hoped he could reach her, reason with her, but she just glared at him icily. He wished that she would say something, anything. Give him an opening that he could work with, but she just stared, cold and blank.

Tong was right; she was not the Elise he had known. Despite being, at the end, a completely unstable murderess there had always been something fiery about Elise. There had been a strong passion in her, a determination that you could see in her eyes. During their first encounter, when they had stood locked together, trying to break each other's will, he had seen the spirit burning within her. And when he had broken her he had seen more than anyone else ever had, he knew it. He had seen right into her, seen the frightened and lost soul. He had seen the human in her. But there was none of that before him now. The woman before him was a cold and hollow shell. It reminded him of the late Anna Navarre, and the comparison caused him to shiver involuntarily.

"Elise, please…" Paul stepped closer to her; he'd hold her back by brute force alone if he had to, not that he was sure he'd be able to. Paul well knew that although he'd bested her twice before, both times the advantage had been his, he wouldn't be so lucky this time. Elise moved so quickly that Paul wasn't sure he'd seen her move at all. But somehow he had ended up on the floor, metres from where he had been standing. His chest throbbed painfully and he could see JC in a similar predicament at the other end of the corridor. Paul tried to get back to his feet but it felt like Elise's fist had punched a hole right through him. He'd never felt anything like it before and he was grateful she'd pulled her punches on their previous encounters. She really was lost, completely out of control and with no-one to guide her she wasn't holding back anymore. Paul grit his teeth and forced himself to his knees. There was a flash of movement and Elise was suddenly standing in front of him, her pistol held level with his head.

'JC…' Paul had a mere second to think of the fate of his brother before there was a loud thump and it seemed someone was moving past him. He turned around to see Elise and another figure tumbling straight through the glass windows behind him. He scrambled to the edge in terror, fearing that JC had tackled Elise from behind. As they fell the figures broke apart and Paul gaped in amazement. There were two Elises!

The first to reach the pavement below was the one that had attacked him just now, she landed easily, seemingly unbothered by the long drop. The second Elise hit the ground hard and fell into a tumble to keep from breaking her legs. But she easily sprang back to her feet to face the other Elise. Paul was sure he was still hallucinating, an effect of being hit so hard no doubt. But when JC finally hauled himself over to the window and exclaimed in surprise, Paul knew his vision was just fine.

"So which one is our delightful Elise?" JC croaked, only a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Hopefully the one that just saved our asses." Paul replied as he turned back to the figures below. Neither of them had moved, they stood like statues, staring at the other. As shocking as Paul had found this revelation, he knew what he felt could not compare to what was going through the minds of those two women. Although he would have liked to stay and watch or to lend his Elise some aid, he and JC still had a job to do.

"Come on JC, we've got to find Everett." Paul slowly got to his feet and JC reluctantly followed him back to the apartment door.


	14. Mirror, Mirror

Elise hit the ground and rolled to a stop. She clambered swiftly back to her feet, shards of broken glass falling amongst the snow to the ground. She looked to her opponent and was frozen with shock. At first she thought the fading light was playing tricks on her eyes. As her twin turned to regard her, Elise could not deny the reality of what she saw. Everett had cloned her, replaced her in a matter of hours. But Elise knew he must have planned for this from before her conception. The full impact of her expendability struck her like a sharp slap. It was clear to her now that she had never been anything but a puppet to Everett. Not even a living thing, simply a lump of flesh that he had crafted to his will.

'And I strove to make him proud.' Elise's resentment flared anew, both at her creator, and at the puppet that now replaced her. She wondered what her clone must be thinking. What lies had Everett fed to her? The other began to slowly stalk towards her and for the first time Elise knew what her own victims had seen, the fear they had felt. As the other closed in Elise felt herself move instinctively, trying to increase the distance between them. Slowly they circled each other, Elise trying to buy time, to understand what advantages this clone had over her.

When Elise had first woken in Everett's lab she had been awkward, ungainly. It had taken time for her to get used to her body, to know how to move, to fight. The knowledge had all been implanted in her head, but it still took time for the body to master. If this clone was newly awakened, there was chance she would not yet have full control of her body. The hope was slim, but it might be the only advantage Elise would have.

"I don't want to fight you." Elise pleaded at last. They couldn't keep stalking each other like this. The clone stood still and a smirk played across her features.

"Of course you don't. Who would want to fight their superior?" The hollow voice sent a lightning chill down Elise's spine. She gasped in surprise as the clone shimmered briefly and disappeared. A split second later Elise's body was flung across the courtyard, skidding through the snow she eventually crashed into a fountain.

"Oh shit…" She tried to push herself off the ground, but it felt like she'd been flattened by a train. It seemed the clone had no trouble controlling her body after all. She rolled onto her back, but the clone was no-where to be seen. Elise switched her vision to infra-red, just in time to see the clone reach out and pull her off the ground. The clone was shaking her around like a limp rag doll, and tossed her back to the ground with all her augmented might.

Elise coughed blood as she was driven into the ground. Snow billowed around them, and the concrete beneath Elise crumbled and cracked from the impact. It wasn't the only thing to crack, and Elise could vaguely recall her ribs being broken before. The clone pulled back to strike again but Elise rolled away and scrambled to her feet. Her body was screaming in agony but she ignored it.

Elise flashed away, using a sudden burst of speed to keep her distance. Her hand slipped inside her coat and although she knew the clone would be right behind her, she slid to a halt and turned. The clone's fist immediately smashed into Elise's face. Again Elise ended up face down in the snow and she rolled over as the cloak around the clone shimmered off. Her twin's expression was one of disgust and disappointment, her smile hard and cruel. Elise mimicked the smile and the clone's brow furrowed with confusion as an electronic bleep sounded in her coat pocket. The EMP grenade flashed and the clone fell to her knees, her skin burning as all bioelectric energy was drained from her system. Elise hurriedly closed the distance between them.

Grabbing the back of her head, Elise drove her knee into the clone's face. She followed with a powerful kick to her mid-section and another aimed at the clone's kidneys. Her twin tried to struggle to her feet, but Elise was relentless raining blow after blow on her replacement. Her hatred of Everett she poured into every single strike until her clone seemed nothing more than a bloodied, mangled corpse. She'd been right after all, without the aid of her augmentations the clone had no more finesse or control than the average citizen off the streets. Elise stumbled away from her twin, her breathing laboured and shallow as she clutched at her ribs. The clone managed to climb back to her feet, swaying like a drunkard. Her eyes had glazed over and were almost lifeless.

"Aren't you going to finish it?" She croaked and Elise regarded her with surprise. "This one is no good to me now anyway."

Elise hissed with surprise and took a step back. It was Everett! It might speak with the clone's hollow rasp, but there was no mistaking Everett's cold, obnoxious tone. The clone was even more of an abomination than she had first suspected.

"Does this surprise you my dear daughter?" He mocked her and the clone's mouth twisted into a humourless grin.

"What right do you have to use people like this?" Elise demanded, her own voice hard with anger.

"People? I would hardly consider you a person, and this thing even less so. She is the perfect machine though, the ideal servant." Elise ground her teeth at his words, there was so much that she felt, that she wanted to express to him, to prove him wrong, but the words would not come to her. "And I realised where the error lay in you. I had tried to create someone with too normal a personality. Why bother with artificial memories though, why not simply create a personality with only the elements I wanted? Loyalty, flexibility, intelligence, and absolutely no empathy whatsoever. Do not pity this one, she likes to kill, and so shall all that follow her."

"I won't let you do this! I will stop you. You can't do this!"

"Stop me? But my dear, you helped me achieve it all. My precious prototype, I couldn't have done it without you. " The empty, soulless laughter pierced Elise to her core and awoke a fury like she had never known.

"Bastard!" She lunged at her clone, no longer seeing it, all she saw was Everett and his smirk. Her hands closed around his throat, squeezing the life from him.

The life returned to the eyes of the clone as Everett released his control and she fought feebly against Elise's grasp. Her mouth worked desperately, like a landed fish, slowly suffocating. Unable to cry out, Elise screamed for them both as the clone's throat was crushed beneath Elise's grip, the bones crumbling to powder and the flesh rending violently. Elise dropped the limp body to the ground and fell to her knees beside it. Her body heaved with great sobs of anguish as she clutched the body of her twin to her, the warm blood flowing freely into the snow.

Elise was resolved that she had had enough of death, enough of killing. She would never kill another human again. She would be sure that Everett died in a most painful manner though, after all, he was no longer human.


	15. A Daring Plan

Elise shivered with a sudden chill as her blood mingled with the clones, slowly seeping onto the snow and staining it crimson. Her tears fell silently on the mangled corpse, her vocal chords strained from the intensity of her anguished screams. Caught up in her thoughts the sounds around her had become muted and muffled, as though she were underwater. But a persistent and familiar pounding drew her gaze upwards, and finally she recognised the explosions for what they were as shards of glass and cement came crashing down around her. The staccato of gunfire pierced her dull senses and brought her back to reality. Elise clambered to her feet and grasped the clone under her shoulders, dragging the limp body toward the apartment building where the Denton's had clearly encountered MJ12 troops.

Elise located the service door through which the Denton's had gained access to the building. She laid her clone gently at the base of the stairs and sprinted up to the top floor with renewed vigour. She was able to ignore the pain in her broken body, the nanites in her system already working to stop the loss of blood from her minor wounds. She would need medical attention eventually to completely repair her broken bones and torn flesh. But right now she had to help the Denton brothers before they were blown to pieces.

She reached the top floor, slightly out of breath and took a moment to relax before she cracked the door open to survey the situation. MJ12 infantry were ranged throughout the darkened corridor, their sights locked on the blasted doorway of the final apartment. Elise let the door close silently and she stared at the empty stairwell, looking for inspiration. She had come to Moscow completely under-equipped. Tong had refused to give her any weapons, hoping that without any she would give up her persistent request to be taken to Moscow to hunt Everett. She had only managed to pilfer a few grenades from the Luminous Path guards as she had stalked out of Tong's compound to find her own way to this cold, dark city.

'_Think, think, think.'_ She chanted as she tapped her fist against her forehead. She'd never had to fight MJ12 soldiers before; she'd always been able to just waltz in and out of their headquarters with ease.

'_Wait… of course!' _Her heart raced as she thought through what she was about to do. If she was lucky it would work, she hoped that Everett had been foolish enough to continue using her clone as his human agent for interacting with his MJ12 cronies. Elise threw her shoulders back confidently and adopted the arrogant air of command she had learned so well from Everett. Pulling the door open she stepped through, ready to dive back in if necessary. The troops nearest her reacted instantly, training their weapons on her, until she was recognised and they jumped to their feet, saluting crisply.

"Sorry Ma'am." One of the troops muttered nervously. Elise had to suppress a smile of relief as she waved away the soldier's apologies.

"Who's in command here?" She snapped and the trooper turned toward the apartment.

"Corporal Burns, Ma'am." He indicated a soldier halfway down the column and Elise nodded her thanks as she moved down the line of crouching troops.

It seemed they had reached an uneasy ceasefire for the time being, the Denton's making no move out of the apartment and the MJ12 not daring another assault. Elise's eyes roamed to the scorched entryway of the apartment. The door was completely gone and she could make out the bloody remains of a couple of MiB's and MJ12 troops who had been caught in the blast. The corporal seemed almost relieved to see her, it was clear he didn't know what to do next. Although Everett had been careful to conceal the existence of the Denton's from her, they were notoriously legendary among the MJ12. All kinds of rumours abounded about their dangerous abilities until they had reached a fearful, god-like status. It severely affected the morale of MJ12 troops, and worked to her advantage now.

"I'll take over here now Corporal."

"Very well Ma'am." He did a poor job of hiding his relief.

"Take your men downstairs and secure all exits."

Burns saluted and signalled to his men to begin an orderly retreat as Elise moved toward the front of the column. The smell of roasted flesh hung thickly in the air close to the apartment, not even the cold wind blasting in through the shattered windows could clear away the acrid stench. She had reached the front of the column and was starting to hope that her plan might work when she heard the radios of the troops near her crackle to life.

"All units, all units, Agent Everett is not in Moscow. We have reports of an impostor in that vicinity, she is to be shot on sight. I say again, Everett is not in Moscow. Kill the impostor."

Elise turned slowly in the sharp silence that followed and grinned innocently at the troops as the information slowly sank in. She dove for the doorway as they brought their guns to bear, a hail of bullets slamming into the walls as she scrambled to get behind cover. She had to frantically seek shelter as the Denton's also opened fire from inside the apartment, thinking she was some MJ12 attacker.

"Whoa, hold up! It's Elise. It's ELISE!" She screamed over the sound of the assault rifles. Grenades came bouncing in through the doorway and the ruined apartment shook from the impact. Elise got to her feet and ran again as the floor beneath her began to give way. She could see Paul holding down JC's gun as she dove behind their ramshackle barricade.

"Hello boys!" She exclaimed breathlessly, still elated by the boldness of her recent actions, even though her plan had fallen through.

"I told you it was her." Paul grumbled at JC, who still seemed unconvinced.

"How do we know for certain?" He asked, keeping his gun levelled at her.

Elise stared nonchalantly down the muzzle of his rifle before bringing her eyes to meet his.

"How is your knee?" She smirked, remembering that she had shattered it only days before.

Paul guffawed as JC grimaced at the uncomfortable memory. "It still feels like it's broken." He smiled briefly despite the complaint.

"I know," Elise replied quietly, "even though the bones are mended, it seems to take a while for them to forget the trauma." She flexed her wrist and JC could not miss the meaningful glance that passed between her and Paul. More grenades plunged into the apartment and Paul glanced casually at the door to be sure no troops followed behind the blasts.

"So what's the plan? How are we getting out of here?"

"Getting out? How the hell did you get **in**!" Elise chuckled at JC's surprise and shook her head.

"Jock is on his way, we have to wait for a bit." Paul replied as he opened fire on some troops trying to enter the apartment. They fell back just as quickly, one of them taking a bullet to the leg.

"Very good. I need to pick something up before we go. She..." Elise furrowed her brow; she didn't feel comfortable treating her clone as a person. It made her wonder about her own identity too much. "… It is downstairs."

"You mean your clone? There's no way I'm getting into a helicopter with another unstable, psychotic murderer!" JC fell silent under the furious glare he received from Paul and Elise curled unconsciously into a little ball. His words cut right into her and she had to fight back the tears she felt welling up inside her. He was right after all, she was a killer. Did she expect that now that she seemed to be fighting for the same cause as them, that they would forget all the people she had killed? They're own friends she had murdered?

"I mean, I didn't mean…" JC started to stammer, but couldn't find the words to continue. He sighed in resignation and turned his attention to the entry.

"Elise." Paul's warm hand squeezed her shoulder. "I don't understand most of what you've been through. Tong tried to briefly explain it to me, and I know that in your heart you've always been a good person. Whatever you may have done, you were only doing what you thought was for the right, and the rest of the time, you weren't in control." He grasped both of her shoulders now and gave her a little shake to get her to look at him. "It wasn't your fault. It may not mean much to you right now but, I forgive you." His gentle voice and sympathy broke the last of her resolve and she let her tears flow freely.

In the back of her mind she was aware of the surrealistic nature of this moment. Here in the arms of a man she had tried to kill, in the middle of a battleground, she was finally learning what it meant to be human, and where it was that she belonged in life.

She let out of little exclamation of surprise when Paul roughly pushed her away from him and onto the floor. He smothered her body with his and moments later the side of the apartment blew inward. The black helicopter loomed before them, the rotors blowing the debris around them into a fierce gale. One by one they leapt safely inside it and Elise directed Jock to the bottom of the building where she retrieved the body of her clone. As she hauled it inside the helicopter JC and Paul both regarded it's battered state with naked horror and revulsion. They looked at each other uncertainly as she laid it down gently and arranged its stiffening limbs.

"I thought Tong might like to study it." She murmured as she brushed loose hair away from the clone's bruised features.

Paul crept closer, his face an unreadable mask as he stared at it.

"It looks just like you." He said at last. "Doesn't that bother you?"

"Does looking at JC bother you?" Elise shot back; she wasn't the only unnatural freak around here.

"It's different for us, we were raised as brothers. Besides this is," He swallowed uncomfortably. "This is like looking at your own death." He reached down and closed the lifeless eyes of the clone. He seemed more disturbed by this than Elise had been. It didn't bother her that she had a clone. So what if someone looked like her? She knew that they were still different people. But it drove home the fact the she was herself a clone, a fabrication. A tool that had been used to cause misery and devastation and then cast aside like garbage when she had become a liability. She felt drowsy now that she was safely inside the helicopter, high above the city and speeding toward Hong Kong. She lay back on the cold deck, listening to the rhythm of the rotors and soon she was lost in slumber.

"Now that looks like a good idea." JC remarked as he too settled back in the dark cabin. Paul leant back, lost in his own thoughts as JC started to snore. He waited for sleep to come, but it eluded him. He opened his eyes, drawn again to look at the two female forms, side by side in the dark. One of them was cold and bloodied, but the other one was so very much alive, and such a puzzle to him. Her face had taken on a gentle serenity that he had never seen before. Paul thought of how lost and helpless she must feel, how little she knew of the world. He had to remind himself that although she looked like a grown woman she had lived a mere seven months. In the calm of sleep she finally resembled the child that she truly was on the inside.

At last sleep finally took hold of him, but a pair of piercing blue eyes haunted his dreams. Eyes that had lost their spark of life.


	16. Downtime

The black chopper touched down in the Luminous Path Compound. The landing executed with such finesse that none of its passengers were jarred from their sleep. Jock clambered to the ground, glad to stretch his legs after so many hours crammed in the small cockpit. Tong appeared on the porch of the headquarters and Jock intercepted him before he could move to the helicopter.

"It's nap time Tong, why don't you let them get some rest for once?" Jock held a hand in front of Tong but the smaller man dodged around it.

"Elise was injured, and the body!"

"Can all wait." Jock took hold of Tong's shoulder to restrain him. "Besides, she's a lot more pleasant when she's sleeping. As for the Denton's it's about time they got a moments rest."

"I monitor they're physical condition very closely," Tong shrugged off Jock's hand in indignation. "They're bodies are made to handle this much stress."

"They're bodies perhaps, but what about they're minds?" Tong shuffled impatiently but decided to humour Jock and hear him out. "Until we met Elise I never thought about what JC and Paul have been through. But I realise now how easily either one of them could become like her. Broken and traumatised. Think about everything they've done and seen." Jock pleaded with Tong but he could see that his words were falling on deaf ears. "Especially JC. In the past year he's lost faith in everything he ever believed in, and now they're being asked to embrace as an ally someone that tried to kill them. I'm just asking you to give them a break. You put them under so much pressure."

"I don't recall that you were qualified beyond piloting aircraft. You can leave the welfare of our agents to the experts." By now the guards of the compound had stopped patrolling, all eyes on the two men arguing.

"I'm not disparaging your abilities Tong, you're a brilliant man, but I don't think you understand humans as well as you do machines. I know you've got noble visions; you want to save the world and make it a better place. It's easy for you to do, sitting here in comfort and safety day in and day out. But these are the guys that are making your dreams reality, and no matter how great they're abilities might be, they're still only two men, and human after all."

"This is what they were trained to do, so they do it! I know they suffer." Tong shook his head and started again for the chopper. Jock shouted after him.

"Do you really? Do you see them, cut to pieces, they're morale broken as you have to help drag them to safety. To bring them back here so your medics can patch them up and _you_ can send them back out to get shot up again!"

Tong stopped in his tracks and rounded on Jock.

"And what else would they do? Do you think they'd be happy to live as ordinary men? Go to an office job everyday until they grow old and soft? I don't force them into this Jock, they have free will."

"I don't know about that." Jock muttered quietly as Tong turned back to head to the chopper.

"What are you two arguing about?" Elise was leaning idly on the side of the cabin.

"Ah nothing." Jock scratched at the back of his head, there was no point arguing with Tong, he'd never listen to him.

"You! Don't you ever go running off like that again." Tong immediately pounced on Elise, berating her as he would a wayward child. "Especially not without a functioning infolink. How can I keep track of your systems if you do this? I have no idea if that chip in your head is deactivated for good. A sudden EMP surge could have set it off, then where would you be!" Elise bore the scolding soundly but Jock could see the fury smouldering in her eyes. He sighed, when would Tong ever learn that he couldn't treat people like foolish children. "You are not to leave this compound without my permission ever again!"

"If she hadn't, we'd be dead now." Remarked Paul firmly as he appeared next to Elise. Jock smirked as the girl turned a subtle shade of pink and Tong's mouth snapped shut at a loss for words.

Elise cleared her throat and leapt to the ground. She grabbed her clone by the feet and pulled it to the edge of the chopper before slinging it over her back. She turned to Tong.

"Where you wannit?"

"Take it down to the Med Lab." Replied Tong, quickly recovering his composure.

Paul turned to JC and kicked him in the leg.

"Ow! Alright I'm awake, you don't have to kick me!" JC complained loudly, rubbing his shin.

"Well I wasn't going to kiss you that's for sure."

"Yeah but that only works if you're Prince Charming, Paul. Not the Beast." The younger brother drawled sarcastically and Paul laughed.

"Come on, Tong doesn't seem happy." Paul gave JC his hand and pulled him to his feet. Jock sighed in resignation as he watched the brothers stride together into the headquarters. Maybe Tong was right; this was the life they had been made for. But he couldn't bear to see them being used and abused by people who thought they knew better.

UNATCO had used them, Morgan Everett had too, and now he feared Tong had turned out no better. Perhaps Elise's instability and hatred of authority was just the influence they needed to push them toward gaining their own independence.

"It really is a fine specimen, but was all this damage really necessary?" Tong was poking at the cold form of Elise's clone. Elise winced, she had spent the last few hours being prodded by him herself as he had worked to fix her info link.

"I wouldn't have given up without a fight, nor would she." She replied quietly.

"Well next time, see if you can just knock her out, I might be able to reverse whatever Everett's done. Wouldn't it be nice to have a sister?" His tone was indifferent and Elise scowled.

"I'm sure you'd be very happy to add another toy to your collection of second-hand clones." She stormed out of the lab and Tong shrugged and went back to work.

Elise was seething; she couldn't stand the patronising way in which Tong spoke to her. She knew he didn't care one whit about how she felt. He wasn't as power mad as Everett, but she could still see many similarities between them. Neither of them seemed to feel any real human emotion. They had no empathy. And the thought chilled her. How could Tong decide what was right for her, or the Denton's or the global populace, if he couldn't even understand how they felt.

She made her way up to the courtyard for some air and found that Paul was trying to help JC improve his hand-to-hand combat technique. She slinked to the wall nearby them and set herself down on a stack of crates to watch them. Paul gave her a little nod then focussed again on JC. Elise couldn't help but smile as she watched them working hard, until eventually one of them would slip, or reach too far and smack the other in the nose, or the eye and then they'd both burst into fits of laughter. Paul would catch JC in a particularly painful grip and he'd howl in pain, but then Paul would let him go and they'd slap each other on the back and smile and get straight back to practicing. It was clear to anyone there was a strong bond between them. Something that was much deeper than their identical appearance.

'_Wouldn't it be nice to have a sister?'_

Elise sighed; she was determined to stop Everett before he could produce another clone, before he could bring suffering to another poor innocent. She had to assume that he'd had her former replacement already waiting in reserve. So how long would it take before there would be another one free to wreak havoc. She didn't know but it simply wasn't meant to be, she knew she would always be alone.

She was so busy thinking she hadn't even realised that the Denton's were approaching her. They had had enough for one day, they were covered in sweat, but they were barely out of breath.

"Hey Elise, you should join us next time. Give me a bit of a challenge compared to this old man." JC rolled his eyes toward Paul and the elder scoffed.

"If I recall, this old man had you flat on your back several times. Not once could you take me down though." JC yawned dramatically at his retort.

"Was just going easy on you." They both chuckled and Elise grinned. Watching them chatting like this was so eerie, it was almost like she had double vision. It was also the first time she'd seen them together in a relaxed state and completely unprofessional.

"Although what was that move you did earlier, it caught me completely by surprise." JC awkwardly tried to imitate what Paul had done.

"Nicolette taught me that. It's very much her style, flashy and loose." Paul winked slyly at JC.

"Ahhh, Nicolette. She really liked to get physical eh?" They both snickered knowingly before their expressions turned sad and sombre.

'_Nicolette… Nicolette.'_ Elise pondered; the name seemed familiar to her. _'Of course! Nicolette DuClare.' _She wondered why they seemed so sad though. The memory suddenly struck her like lightning, the tattooed back, the blood, the stench of burning flesh. She looked at JC in horror and she saw him lying on the ground, bloody and bruised and barely alive. She remembered the all-consuming hatred she had felt as the veil that had clouded her memory of the past few weeks was finally lifted. And it was more than she could bear. She sprang to her feet, trembling violently. Paul reached out to steady her but she pulled back from him as a loud sob broke from her lips. She turned from them and vaulted over the wall, running wildly into the Hong Kong night.

JC turned to Paul who looked as stunned as he at the sudden outburst.

"What did I say?"


	17. Reconciliation

"Alex!" JC came rushing into the Comm. Centre and to the small office that had been set up for Alex..

"Yeah I know. I'm on it." The pale and scrawny man replied tersely. JC came to stand beside Alex who sat hunched in front of a bank of terminals. JC could see the feedback coming in from three different systems. His, Paul's and Elise's. Day in and day out Alex sat in this room and watched everything they did. There was a small bunk next to the terminals with empty packets of soy food strewn about it. JC grimaced, not only was he unhappy with the idea of constant surveillance, but it was clear that Alex had developed an unhealthy obsession.

"Talk to me Alex, where is she?" Paul's voice suddenly came down the link.

"Just keep heading north Paul, you won't catch her, she's moving too fast."

"What's going on?" Tong demanded as he and Jock entered.

"I don't know. We were talking and Elise just broke down suddenly and ran off."

"They mentioned Nicolette DuClare." Alex added helpfully and JC frowned.

"Hmmm, it's quite possible that you have inadvertently triggered the return of Elise's more recent memories. I believe it was partly a self-defence mechanism that blocked the massacre at the Chateau," Tong inclined his head toward JC, "and her assault on you in Vienna from her mind. It could be quite difficult for her to cope with."

"No shit." Jock muttered and Tong gave him an icy glare.

"She's stopped." Alex announced to break the silent plateau. "She's at the ruins."

Tong leaned over Alex's shoulder.

"Bring her back as soon as you can Paul, we have more important matters to deal with. Keep watch on them Alex." Tong turned on his heel and strode from the room.

"Well, I'm off to the kitchen." Jock announced rubbing his stomach. "Anyone else?"

JC shook his head and no response could be garnered from Alex whose eyes were glued to the monitors in front of him.

Paul ran with renewed vigor now that he knew where Elise had stopped. The Ruins were an older part of Hong Kong that had been destroyed by a violent earthquake. Being a poorer section of the city, the builder's had cut costs, cut corners and when the earthquake came, the poor constructions could not withstand it. Hundreds had been killed in the disaster. They had planned to rebuild the area, and make sure it was done right this time. But then the plague had struck and The Ruins were soon forgotten by all but the very poor that still found it a suitable home.

As he approached the crumbling section of the city he could hear a persistent thumping echo. He followed the sound and soon came across Elise throwing an almighty tantrum. Whatever was in arm's reach she hurled violently at the base of an old building. Already half-collapsed and on unstable foundations the building trembled with every impact. Steel girders punched great holes in the concrete; planks of wood were disintegrated as she howled like a woman possessed. When there was nothing left to throw she began to hurl herself against the battered wall.

Paul would have happily let her vent her emotions, but he couldn't let her cause harm to herself. He tried to catch hold of her, but found himself caught up in her momentum, the air exploded out of him as he was crushed against the wall.

"Paul!"

"Uhhhh…" He was flat on his back and could see her hovering over him apologetically.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Tears streamed down her face and he managed to sit upright.

"It's alright, I'm ok." He groaned and she threw her arms around his waist, burying her head against his chest.

"I didn't know, I didn't know." She sobbed hopelessly and he gently stroked her hair.

"Shhh, it wasn't your fault." He winced; she was clutching to him so hard she was crushing him.

"Tong told me about it all, but if you could see it Paul. If you can see it as I do. Ohhh, what have I done!"

What could he say to her that could possibly make it better? How would he feel if this had happened to him? At least he had his years of wisdom and experience that might have enabled him to handle himself better. But here she had been thrust into the world, with nothing but the knowledge that she had murdered so many innocent people. She knew nothing about life; she had no understanding of her emotions or how to control them. Somehow she had picked up an innate sense of right and wrong, and that was what tormented her so now. No matter how Everett had tried, he couldn't destroy her empathy for other humans. Elise was so vibrant, so passionate that Paul couldn't help but feel drawn to her. He couldn't help but react to the proximity of her; she was so warm and soft against him.

"Hey, its ok. If you don't stop shaking so hard you'll fall apart." She couldn't help but scoff at that. He held her close against him as her shaking slowly subsided.

"Thankyou." She said at length.

"For what?" He smiled down at her, his hand still idly running through her hair.

"For saving me." She replied, rubbing her cheek against his chest.

"Saving you? You give me too much credit."

"No!" She was adamant as she pushed herself upright, away from him slightly. "You could have left me to die in Vienna. But you never gave up on me. You saved me."

He cupped her face in his hand and gently pulled her back to him. "I know better than to argue with you." It warmed him inside to hear her softly giggle for the first time.

"Shut it down Alex." JC growled menacingly.

"Huh?" Alex was only vaguely aware that JC still stood behind him.

"The links. Off. Now!"

"Tong said I was supposed to monitor them at all times." He replied, not moving his eyes an inch.

"Fine, monitor their system stats, but quit perving on them." JC slapped the smaller man on the back of the head, abruptly bringing him back to reality.

"Ok, ok." Alex muttered rubbing the back of his head, and for the first time the monitors went black.


	18. A Little Privacy

JC headed toward the kitchen in search of Tong. He found both Jock and Tong sitting at one of the bench tables, engaged in another heated discussion.

"I'm just expressing my opinion as I see it Tong. I thought you might appreciate a different perspective to your own high and mighty one." Jock drawled acerbically. Tong shot up from his seat in an attempt to tower over the large pilot.

"Need I remind you that your presence here relies entirely on my good graces? I have no need of you or your attitude. I have pilots enough and less opinionated ones that know their place!"

Tong turned to leave but his path was blocked by JC.

"Could I have a word please, Tracer?"

"Why not!" Tong snapped. "Everyone else is."

"About the info-links, surely there is a way to enable us to shut them down at our own command."

Tong sank back to his seat and concentrated on regaining his cold composure.

"I don't think there would be any need for that. It's important that we be able to monitor you at all times. It's for your own safety."

"What about my right to privacy?"

"What do you need privacy for? You don't have time for a private life! It's imperative that we can keep track of you at all times." Tong dismissed him with a wave of his hand and JC felt his jaw tighten.

"We've been fighting all this time for the rights of the individual, for people's rights to privacy, for a better way of life. Haven't we earned that right, more than anyone!" JC glared at Tong, who could not meet his piercing blue gaze. Jock, who had been listening with great interest, raised his soda can to his lips to hide his smirk.

"We'll talk about it when Paul gets back." Tong got to his feet and dodged around JC. "Right now I have… pressing matters to attend to."

JC watched Tong make a hasty retreat toward his lab and shook his head in resignation. It seemed like he would never again be able to have any say about what should be done with his own body, and the augmentations contained within.

He felt a large hand clap down upon his shoulder as Jock chuckled.

"Don't worry JC, Tong will come around eventually, he has no choice. He needs you and Paul more than you need him." Jock gave him a little wink and strode away, whistling a merry tune. JC slumped into a chair, lost in his thoughts. What Jock said was right, Tong couldn't have achieved any of his goals in the last year if it weren't for him and Paul. But Tong had done just as much in return. Deactivated his kill-switch and saved his life, helped nurse Paul back to health, even saved Elise's life. He had saved them all, but did that mean he had the right to act as though he owned them? Besides who else could they turn to, who else knew enough about nano-augmentation, and had the resources to keep them running smoothly?

None of it mattered anyway, as long as other people were still in control of his systems and his info-link he was stuck here with Tong. He would indeed have to wait until Paul returned.

Elise fussed at her clothes, trying to make herself presentable again. Paul was doing his best to hinder her efforts, untying her boots strings and unclasping her body armour as soon as she had it in place.

"Paul!" She would whine in exasperation, slapping his hands away as he chuckled gleefully. "You're the one who said Tong wanted us back _urgently_."

"That I did." He murmured in her ear as he held her from behind. Despite her frustration with him she pressed back against him and again Paul chuckled softly as he ran his hands down her sides, over her hips.

"Well I can't go back half dressed and a complete mess." She said, pulling away from him suddenly.

"Why does it matter? It's not as if everyone by now hasn't heard what we've been up to. They do monitor us at all times." He watched her tense up as it suddenly dawned on her what he was saying.

"You know, I'd completely forgotten about that." Elise said at length frowning.

"I never forget, but I refuse to let my life be ruled by it. But we'll figure out a way to eventually gain control, Tong can't…" Elise suddenly took hold of him and kissed him, stopping him short.

"Let's head back then and talk about this _later_."

"Of course."

Elise leapt away from him, out of his reach and hurriedly tied her boots back up.

"You might want to get a head start." She announced with a wicked smile and they were off, racing toward the Luminous Path compound. It was no competition really, Elise was undoubtedly faster, but she slowed down a little bit so as not to bruise his ego too much.

JC was waiting for them in the courtyard and Elise blushed furiously when he greeted her with a knowing smile. They stood there in an awkward silence waiting for Paul to arrive. Ten minutes later he was given clearance through the main gate.

"About time!" Elise exclaimed with an evil laugh.

"Well I was a bit worn out…" He retorted with a smirk and Elise bowed her head in embarrassment.

"Ugh enough! Tong wants to brief us all, so hurry up." JC ushered them inside.

Alex had informed Tong the minute Elise and Paul had arrived back in the compound. They were hurried down to the kitchen where Jock, Tong and Alex sat waiting for them.

"So nice of you to finally join us." Tong remarked icily as the three agents found a seat and the briefing began.


	19. Strange Dreams

Elise walked alone down the long, dark corridor, dust swirling beneath her... No sounds reached her as she moved, not even the soft padding of her bare feet upon the cold stone floor.

There was a crack of light at the end and she approached it cautiously, placing her ear to the door to hear what lay beyond it. But still she could hear nothing. She fumbled for the door handle and pushed the door open, the sudden light blinding her after being in the dark.

She stumbled forward and could feel loose gravel beneath her feet. She lowered the hand that shielded her eyes and took in the view of the compound. MJ12 troops patrolled around the compound, their weapons held in a relaxed position. Instinctively she dropped to a crouch, waiting for them to see her and attack, but no one seemed to notice her.

Her eyes swung to the very centre of the courtyard and she blinked in surprise at what she saw. Tong and Everett sat with each other, laughing and chatting as they drank tea together. She tried to hear what they said, yet though their mouths moved their voices were absent. Elise rubbed at her ears. She was deaf _and_ delusional.

Her attention returned to Tong as he reached for a biscuit and casually tossed it behind his back. Elise drifted sideways until she could see what was behind Tong and Everett. A post was driven into the ground and attached to it were three chains. At the end of two she found Paul and JC, collars bound around their necks as they lay on the ground, shadows of their former selves. They looked thin and emaciated and showed no interest at all in the food that had been tossed at them. Their eyes were glazed over and lifeless but as she moved closer she saw an awareness return to their features.

They snarled at her silently and so she halted, deciding to keep her distance. But the longer she stood there the more animated they became, howling and pulling against the chain that bound them.

It was only then that Elise realised she had a gun in her hand. She looked down at it and gasped in horror at her deformed body. It seemed her nanites had gone rogue, berserk. They were busy building protruding constructions all over her form. Improving it, disfiguring it, with mechanical efficiency. Her gun hand raised up and she followed it with her eyes as it locked onto its target.

There was no sound, no resounding crack as the gun fired and the projectile burst through Morgan Everett's head. She watched it happen with cold indifference as Tong turned to face her, that same looked of arrogant disdain on his face that she had come to know so well. It seemed the most natural thing to put a bullet through his head as well. The Denton's were jumping around in a frenzy as she approached the table and threw them a handful of biscuits off it. They fell upon them, devouring them hungrily and then settled back onto the ground.

The MJ12 troops continued to patrol without any concern over what had just transpired. Nonchalantly she dropped the gun on the table and kicked Tong out of his chair. He fell heavily to the ground and she plonked herself down in the now vacant seat. A trooper approached her and set a clean cup before her and poured her some tea. She reclined in her chair, relaxing in the sunshine as she sipped at her tea and absently stroked Paul Denton's head as he relaxed on the ground beside her.

Elise felt a strange buzzing sound grow steadily in her ears. She tried to locate the source of it and found that as the sound grew louder her vision began to swim. The world around her became hazy and distorted. As the noise in her ears reaches an unbearable level she finds herself once again blinded by a harsh light. She throws her hands up to try and block it, and realises she is under a spotlight.

Beyond the circle of light she can make out vague outlines in the darkness. She can see them moving and shifting, shapes only, possibly people. She knows they are watching her but they make no sound.

"What do you want?" She asks, startled by the sound of her voice after so much silence. There is no reply.

"Who are you?" She whispers desperately, fear washing over her.

"Who…" a distant voice echoes uncertainly, mimicking her, "are… you?" The buzzing becomes more persistent and she feels as though she is floating, that she is leaving her body. Something suddenly leaps toward her from the shadows, coming into the light and her whole body jerks in surprise. She is awake.

Elise looks up, bleary eyed and confused. She groans loudly and slams her hand against the alarm, ceasing its persistent buzzing. She collapses back into her bunk as she tries to recall the quickly fading images of her dream.

"How bizarre." She muses as she slowly rises again from her bunk, swinging her feet out onto the cold concrete slab beneath her. Even Tong's guards had more cosy barracks than she and the Dentons. But she supposes they never planned to have them staying at the compound, and she ought to be grateful for whatever accommodation they provided, even if it was a dank old storage room.

She observes that neither Paul nor JC are still in their bunks and she hurries to get dressed. While Tong had still been in their line of sight after the briefing the three of them had concluded that the only place they could safely talk would be in the Comm. Room with Alex. That was the only way they could know that Tong could not be watching them and listening to anything they discussed.

Elise was still unsure as to what the purpose of the briefing had been. Tong had no new information to give them, merely laid down a new set of rules for them all to follow, like good obedient little children. When JC had raised the question of them gaining a little more privacy, Tong had dismissed it and claimed he was still considering their options. In Elise's opinion there was nothing for _Tong_ to consider. If the three of them wanted to have a little more control over their own lives, who was he to say no? But what disturbed Elise most on a personal level was that Tong had sent Toby Atanwe out of the compound to locate Everett's new base. Despite Tong's renowned paranoia, he seemed quite eager to trust in Atanwe.

'_Paul?_' She sent out a tentative query via her info-link.

'_I'm in the kitchen_.' His reply came loud and clear directly into her brain. '_JC is waiting in the Comm. Room. Meet me there if you like._'

She hurried up the stairs, climbing swiftly to the first sub-level.

She came out near Med Lab and she looked around to see if anyone else was about. Elise heard nothing but the humming and bleeping of the medical equipment and she shuffled toward Communications. She had to pass through the Command centre, but the night shift barely even noticed her. Quickly and quietly she slipped through the door to Alex's little office and shut the door behind her.

Paul had beaten her there and was lounging casually with JC against the monitoring equipment. Since all three of them were there, Alex had taken the opportunity to take his eyes of the banks of monitors and give them a much-needed rest.

"Ok, first things first." Paul stated as he turned to Alex. "All we need to know Alex is if you are with us, or with Tong."

Alex didn't even hesitate as he replied firmly. "I'm with you guys, always have been." He seemed rather insulted by Paul's question but Paul clapped him reassuringly on the shoulder.

"I don't doubt that Alex, I just want you to be sure of what you could be getting into here."

"That's ok." Alex replied as he turned back to his terminal. "Makes me feel like I'm back at UNATCO." He gave a nervous little chuckle. "Only I don't have Gunther breathing down my neck." Paul and JC both smiled at that. "Right, I'll be erasing all records of this meeting and fabricating some new ones to make it look like you've all been asleep. Not that I think Tong will check, but…"

"Better safe than sorry." JC finished for him. Alex nodded, his fingers dancing over the keyboard momentarily before he turned his eyes back to the three of them. They were all silent for a minute until Paul spoke again.

"Well Elise, this was mostly your idea. What did you want to talk about?" He inclined his hand toward her to indicate that she should speak up.

"I know you're both as unhappy with Tong's recent treatment of all of us. His refusal to consider our basic wishes when it comes to our own bodies, our systems is just outrageous. Sure ok, we didn't develop and implant this nano-tech ourselves, so technically it isn't ours. But it's not Tong's either. He's just the only person we know that understands it, and on occasion has been a useful ally." Paul and JC both nodded their agreement. "But just because he has helped us in the past, doesn't mean he has the right to maintain control over us. You two have done just as much for him as he has for you."

"We know all this and we agree. But what can we do? We don't have the same facilities as Tong does, and let's face it, we _need_ this kind of support considering what we do." Paul sighed, the more he thought about it the more he realised they didn't have a lot of options. "Besides, if something goes wrong with our augmentations, I wouldn't know how to fix it, would you?"

"No, but maybe it's time we started learning." Elise insisted.

"I guess your right, the idea just never crossed my mind. When we were with UNATCO everything about our augmentations was classified." JC shrugged helplessly. "We couldn't have learnt more about them even if we wanted to. And even now, the only people that seem to have any information are Everett and Tong. I can't imagine that either of them would be very helpful."

"But what about the people that developed this technology, there must have been years of research and experimentation. There _must_ be others that are experts in the field." Elise pleaded with them; they ought to know more about it. She knew nothing because she had been born into ignorance, kept in the dark by Everett. But they had lived at least twenty times longer than her, they had to know more, they must have come across something in that time, even by accident.

"Ok, sure there would be researchers and scientists, but most of them would still be loyal to MJ12 or the Illuminati, or any other shadow organization. We need someone that has independence. Someone like Tong."

Uh, guys…" Alex began tentatively, not knowing if he was invited into this discussion, or merely an observer. "What about Gary Savage?"

JC's jaw dropped open, lost for words as Paul smacked himself on the forehead. "Of course!"

"Do you think he'd want to help us though?" JC began, looking from Alex to Paul. "I was under the impression that he didn't really want to be involved with any particular faction. Just to be left alone with his research." JC and Paul both fell silent to ponder the idea. Elise couldn't help but smile as they stood there, striking the same thoughtful pose. It was almost comical.

"What can you tell me about this Savage?" Elise asked, making herself comfortable as she eased onto Alex's ramshackle bunk.

"Well I did a few favours for him about a year ago." JC stated with a touch of arrogance. "Saved his daughter and such. He's a nice guy, pretty smart, and has his own facility, X-51."

Paul continued as JC trailed off. "I don't know if he knows much about nano-augmentation, but I'd wager a guess it wouldn't take him and his researchers long to figure it out. The last time we met he was more interested in counter-acting the grey death, we didn't touch much on any other subjects."

"So we know at least that he's interested in helping others, without any gain for himself?" Elise asked. So far this Gary Savage seemed a hundred times better than Tong.

"Definitely. He seems like our best option at the moment. Although…" Paul hesitated for a moment as he scratched nervously at his head. "Tong isn't really all that bad, we could maybe give him another chance. At least wait until he gives us a definite answer about shutting down the info-links from time to time." Elise stared at Paul disbelievingly. "He did say he was considering it."

"And you believed that?" Elise sputtered in exasperation.

"Well…" Paul replied sheepishly but JC interjected.

"I think we should give him the benefit of the doubt. Tong is not a bad man Elise, just preoccupied. I'm sure he'll come around in the end.

Elise threw up her hands in resignation. "Fine then! I'm going back to bed." And she stormed out of the room.

"Yeah me too." Paul stated yawning.

"And me!" JC replied, hurrying after them. He turned at the door to look at Alex. "You should get some sleep too Alex. You look like shit!"

Paul caught up to Elise, easily matching her stride. "I didn't get a chance to tell you about the conversation Tong had with me earlier tonight, just after you left for bed."

"Oh?" She replied coolly, still brooding over his sudden change of mind regarding Tong.

"He told me he didn't _approve_ of my intimacy with you."

"He what?" Elise spat, stopping dead in her tracks.

"He said he believed you were too fragile to be involved with someone, and that I shouldn't take advantage of that.

"I don't see that it's any of his business!" Elise declared indignantly.

"Well that's what I told him, but he didn't seem happy with that. Said he was going to take matters into his own hands." Elise scoffed at that. "Probably plans to convince you of what an absolute cad I am, and give you a list of all the women I've jilted in the past."

"That wouldn't accomplish much, I don't care about any of that." She replied firmly, locking her eyes onto his.

"I know." He smiled, pulling her close and leaning in to kiss her.

"Get a room you two!" JC remarked as he sauntered up behind them.

"We were just about to." Elise teased as she walked toward their quarters.

JC groaned despondently. "Shall I go steal Alex's bunk then?"

"I'm just kidding JC." Elise laughed as she walked into their room.

"You were?" Paul did a poor job of hiding his disappointment.

JC chuckled cruelly as he swept past his brother and watched as Elise threw herself, fully clothed, onto her bunk. He mimicked her action and settled down to sleep. Paul came in last and flicked the lights off, easily finding his way in the dark to his bunk. He glanced one last time at Elise before sighing and resigning himself to sleep.

Elise watched them both out of the corner of her eye as their breathing became more regular. Thirty minutes passed before she was certain they were both asleep. She silently pushed off from her bunk and reached beneath it for her kit bag, which she kept constantly packed and ready now.

She paused at the door to be sure she hadn't disturbed them. Satisfied they were deep asleep she hurried back to the Comm. Room. Alex had finally gone to bed and she felt a small twinge of guilt as she prodded him awake.

"Huh... wha?" He looked up in surprise, blinking the sleep from his eyes. "Elise?"

"Sorry to wake you Alex, but I need your help."

"Sure, what is it?"

"I need you to tell me where I can find Gary Savage."


	20. Welcome Aboard the Whirlybird

"Well, as far as I know Gary and his team are still at Vandenberg Air Force base." Alex replied as he rubbed at his eyes and donned his glasses. "Do you want me to send a message to let him know you're coming?" Alex was back before his terminal, his body seemingly molded to fit the chair he occupied.

"No, I don't want to risk the chance that Everett might intercept it." Elise suspected Tong kept tabs on all outgoing transmissions too, which would be just as bad.

"Well I would encrypt it for a start." Alex muttered, insulted that she doubted his expertise.

"I'd rather not risk it." She shook her head. "Can you keep Tong off my back for a few hours, not let him know I've gone?"

"No problem." Alex's voice was smugness itself. "Good luck, I'll be watching you."

"Yeah, I know." She replied with resentment; causing Alex to wince with shame. Elise nodded a silent farewell to Alex and turned to slink upstairs to the courtyard.

She could see Jock sleeping in his beloved helicopter. How much easier it would be to just beg him for a lift, but it would obviously draw everyone's attention. No, she would simply have to make her own way to Vandenberg.

'_A challenge at last.' _She mused as she crept toward the compound wall, keeping to the shadows. She ran the last few steps and kicked hard off the ground, easily vaulting over the barrier, falling to a crouch on the other side as she looked around for witnesses. In the past, globe hopping had been a simple matter for her, with MJ12 transport always at hand. Now she could not use them, or any of Tong's allies to get her to Vandenberg.

She had faced the same dilemma when she had sought to find Everett in Moscow and she hoped that she could again find a pilot for hire. Unfortunately what few funds she had left were running low. She hurried through the Wan Chai marketplace, making her way toward the Lucky Money nightclub.

The local police eyed her suspiciously; no doubt they recognised her from her previous visits to Hong Kong. Elise knew they couldn't connect her with any criminal activity, but if they took note of her it was likely word could get back to Tong about where she had been seen and what her final destination was.

"For you, twenty credits admission." The cashier at the entrance to the Lucky Money peered down her nose at Elise. Elise reluctantly handed over the credits and entered the club. She hung to the dark corners to avoid the other patrons on the dance floor and made her way up to the bar area.

'_Only two hundred and thirty credits left'. _She'd have to be incredibly lucky to find a pilot willing to fly her for such a paltry sum. The bar seemed fairly empty, which made her nervous. It was easier to escape attention in a crowd and avoid the security cameras. She approached the bartender and he put down the glass he was polishing as she caught his eye. A slight twitch of his eyebrows told her that he found her appearance unusual. Elise tried to act as casual as possible, dropping her hands to her side, rather than nervously clutching at the straps of her bag.

"What can I get you?" He asked amiably enough.

"I just needed some information." She blurted and as his expression turned sour she quickly added. "And a beer of course." She smiled pleasantly as he turned to get her beer. He slapped it onto the bar in front of her.

"Twenty-five credits for the beer and the tip." Hesitantly she handed over the credits and he pocketed twenty for himself. "What did you want to know?"

"I'm looking for passage out of Hong Kong." Elise grasped the cold bottle of beer, but didn't drink.

"Under the radar I assume, otherwise you wouldn't be here." Elise didn't reply. It wasn't his business as far as she was concerned. Registering her silence the bartender accepted that he wouldn't get anything else out of her. "That guy over there is looking for some work." He pointed to a rough looking man, lounging with his feet on the table, a slouch hat sitting low over his face. "He's got a reliable chopper and reasonable rates."

"Thanks." She gave the bartender a little nod and stepped away from the bar. She could feel his eyes on her back as she walked away. Elise had never given much thought to her appearance but she supposed she stood out compared to the average populace.

The pilot could have been asleep for all she knew, with his hat over his face and his hands resting comfortably on his stomach. There was something about his gruff appearance that reminded her of Jock and she took that to be a good sign.

"Excuse me?" She began and he raised a lazy hand to push back his hat, his eyes just barely visible as he surveyed her. "Would you like a beer?" Elise held the beer out for him and his face cracked into the broadest grin she had ever seen.

"Well that's mighty nice of you I must say." He swung his feet off the table and sat right up, his hat pushed completely back to rest comfortably on his head. He motioned her to sit down as he grasped the beer and took a swig. He set it back onto the table as he made a satisfied sigh. "Just what I needed, cheers luv."

"I understand you're a pilot."

"Straight to the point eh? I like that." He smiled again, his sharp eyes seeming to take in everything about her. "So let's not beat around the bush, I can fly you to most domestic locations for around five hundred. Now if it's a special job, or there's extra risk involved…" He paused to watch her reaction, his mouth turning up at the corner as he noticed her eyes twitch. "Then my price goes up accordingly. If you don't think that's fair, you can find another pilot." He took another swig of his beer to give her time to decide.

"I can live with that." Elise didn't even hesitate, she needed a pilot and he seemed sensible enough. His straight-forward and open demeanour led her to conclude that she could trust him to an extent.

"Bonza! Right then, where do you want to go?" He slapped the glass bottle back onto the table and Elise resisted the urge to look around and see how many people were watching them now.

"Would you be able to get me to Vandenberg Airforce Base, in the US?" Elise kept her voice calm, not wanting to display the urgency she felt.

"Vandenberg? Yeah I've heard of it, never actually been there myself. But I can get you there." He scratched thoughtfully at the stubble on his chin. His nails were roughly chipped, his hands coarse and covered with the dark stains of grease that never really washes away. Elise wasn't sure if it was a comfort or a worry that he clearly maintained his helicopter himself. Still she was relieved at the thought of making it out of Hong Kong.

"S'a long haul flight though, so it's gonna cost you extra." There was no malice in his eyes so Elise believed he wasn't just trying to squeeze extra money out of her. This was a fair business transaction and he needed to cover his costs. He wasn't extorting her. "Say, eight hunner'n fifty credits all up, it'd normally be more, but I don't think I'll have any hangar fees now will I?" He smiled slyly as though he seemed to understand more about her situation that he ought to.

"That's acceptable it's just… I ahh… don't really have a lot of cash." He pulled back from her, his attitude turning cold and distant. "But maybe you'd be willing to trade for some hardware?" She opened her kitbag on the table and pulled out some grenades in such a way that only he would be able to view them.

"Whoa luv, put those away!" He whispered harshly, almost jumping out his chair in surprise. "Are you mental, bringing those in here? Let's hope none of those Red boys noticed." He looked around quickly, but no-one seemed to be watching them now.

"I'm not worried by the Triads." Elise stated simply as she closed up her bag.

"That so?" He paused to readjust his hat, still unnerved by the shock of seeing the grenades. "You're such good mates with them, they can fly you eh?" He waved his hand dismissively, his eyes staring at her coldly. Elise leaned over the table and whispered harshly.

"Look, I don't need questions, just transport." The pilot mimicked her, leaning in until his nose nearly touched hers.

"Understood luv, but I don't need hardware… just credits." He smiled harshly and Elise pulled away from him. She pursed her lips as she considered her options for a moment.

"Fine, wait for me at the helipad." She stated as he raised his eyebrows in query. "Don't worry, I'll have you're money." She reassured him as she pushed herself up from the table. The pilot gave her a curt nod of agreement.

"Be there as soon as I finish me beer." He smiled broadly and Elise turned her back on him and made her way out of the Lucky Money.

She recalled that there was a cash machine in the arcade just outside the club. She hadn't wanted to resort to such criminal means, but if she could hack into it, she might be able to scrounge enough money. If she could avoid being caught doing it by the police that patrolled the area.

The kiosk was closed and the lights out, giving her the perfect cover of darkness to work in. Elise fiddled with her watch, trying to act like it was incredibly significant as she stood outside the kiosk and waited for the police patrol to pass her by. She managed to deftly pick the lock on the shutters of the kiosk and carefully rolled them up. They squeaked quietly and Elise only pulled it high enough so she could squeeze underneath before closing it again.

She crept over to the ATM, checking over her shoulder to be sure no-one could observe her through the window as she went to work on the machine.

"Dammit." Elise growled as she regarded her credit balance with dismay. She'd managed to hack the ATM without trouble, but the amount she had retrieved wasn't nearly enough to pay for her flight. She still needed another two hundred credits. She rubbed at her forehead as she stared at the numbers, trying to think of a solution to her problem. She couldn't think of another ATM in the area that wasn't heavily guarded.

'Would you like me to get some money for you?' Elise jumped, her heart skipping a beat in the split second it took her to realise it was just Alex talking over the comlink.

'Sorry, didn't mean to startle you.' Alex sounded amused, but apologetic.

'It's ok.' Elise exhaled loudly with relief. 'Thought someone had snuck up behind me for a second.'

'So, you want me to appropriate some funds for you?' He sounded so eager to show off his skills.

'You can do that?' Elise knew very little of what Alex was actually capable of. She had thought of him merely as the guy that invaded her privacy every second of the day. But she realised that was a little ungenerous and he could surely be more use than that.

'Sure! Did it all the time when I worked for UNATCO, of course at the time I was seizing the funds of alleged criminals. Since they've listed us all as criminals now, what's one more charge against me?' He gave a little laugh but Elise could sense the tiny twinge of shame in his voice.

'Well… only if you feel comfortable about it.' Elise wasn't sure she felt comfortable about it, but she was rather desperate.

'Don't worry; I'm not going to steal it from anyone who really needs it.' Elise waited anxiously in the silence that followed, not sure what would happen. Maybe this was a mistake as well, what if someone could trace their money back to her and Alex? But Alex interrupted her thoughts. 'There check your account now.'

Elise's jaw dropped and she blinked rapidly, unable to believe what she was seeing.

'Alex! That's more than enough!' She logged off the ATM and looked around the kiosk again to be sure no-one was nearby. Someone was definitely going to notice that much money missing.

'Don't worry; I skimmed bits from lots of different places. It won't be missed.' Alex's calm reassurance couldn't stop her heart beating with shock.

'Let's not do this again okay?' She sent back as she hurried to exit the kiosk.

'If you insist.' He replied moodily as she slipped back under the shutters. The police had returned on their patrol heading toward the Lucky Money so Elise hurriedly left the arcade, bounding up the stairs to the Wan Chai Market and toward the helipad.

At one point it had been an MJ12 facility but had since been reclaimed by the city and was now an open landing bay for public use. Since the triads had united, MJ12 had found it difficult to maintain their presence in Hong Kong. Elise knew her orders to assassinate Tong had been one of the strategies to help MJ12 regain their stranglehold. She was pleased she had failed, even though Tong was now almost as much a thorn in her side as Everett.

She signed with relief to find the elevator to the landing bays empty, although she could do nothing about the security camera. But that didn't matter now; she was almost away from Hong Kong. It had been a lot easier than she had expected. She stepped out of the elevator into the waiting lounge and walked over to the electronic registry on the wall. It occurred to her that she didn't know the name of her pilot, or his chopper as she scanned the registry to find what bay he was in. Fortunately there was only one helicopter listed as currently using the facilities, docked in bay three.

Elise passed a couple of maintenance men on her way to bay three but they barely paid her any mind as they were hurrying to get home. She found her pilot running the pre-flight checklist in his unremarkable helicopter. It was not a beautifully sleek machine like Jock's black chopper, but it seemed sturdy and safe enough. He saw her approaching and climbed down from the cockpit. He made a theatrical bow and swept his arm toward the chopper.

"Welcome aboard the Whirlybird." He announced proudly. "So... are our finances in order?" The pilot asked coolly and she handed over the agreed sum. A broad smile immediately cut across his features. "You beauty. By the way, my names Macca." He extended his hand toward her.

"Oh, Elise." She replied as she shook his hand. Macca gave her a side long glance as though he suspected she was giving him a false name.

"Alright then, Elise. Let's get in the air."


	21. V for Vandenberg

"I'm not getting any response from Vandenberg." Macca broke into Elise's silent reverie. "Their beacon is off as well, if we go in, we'll be flying blind."

"That's not right." Elise straightened in her seat, the flight over had been completely relaxed, but now as they approached her destination, she felt a creeping sense of unease. "I know there ought to be a whole crew of people there."

"There's a whole army by the looks of it." Macca tapped one of the monitors in front of them and Elise was astonished by the number of heat signatures.

"Ok, set me down here, let's keep our distance." Macca quirked an eyebrow at her but did as she instructed. She supposed he thought that she would be welcome at Vandenburg and they would be landing within the base itself.

"Whatever you say, sheila." He started the descent and skilfully touched down. Elise easily rated him as skilled a pilot as Jock. "I'll hang here til you give me the all clear." He announced as she started to climb out of the cockpit.

"Right." She replied with surprise, he didn't need to stay. "Thanks Macca." He wasn't looking at her though but ahead toward the air base, concern on his face.

"Don't mention it, you're a good sort." He shouted now to be heard over the rotors as she leapt down from the chopper. "I'd fly you any day."

'_You don't know what I am.'_ Elise thought to herself as she scrambled over the rough mountain path toward Vandenberg. She was touched though that this near stranger had such concern for her wellbeing. She just prayed he would stay put and wouldn't try to do anything bravely foolish.

She crawled up behind a pile of boulders and peered over the top. Her ocular augmentation allowed her to see beyond the distance of the road into the compound.

'_Did you know I was coming Morgan, or have you set up permanent residency?'_ She pondered as she watched the MJ12 troopers and Commando's patrolling the air base. Elise backed away from her cover and contemplated how she could enter the compound. The single gate and road leading into the base was heavily guarded. She crept to the edge of the road and looked down the steep incline.

'_Fortune favours…'_Elise hoped as she swung her legs over the edge and started to slide down the side of the mountain. The shale underfoot made it hard to get any purchase on the slope but she managed to control her momentum somewhat as she rapidly approached the bottom. Elise reached the ravine floor amidst a cloud of rocks and dust. She brushed herself off and trotted along the gully toward Vandenberg. It wound away from the road and as she approached the base of the cliff she broke into a sprint, leaping from the ground, her momentum carrying her up the side of the sheer mountain wall. She dug her fingers into the cliff face, scrambling at what little purchase there was. Her body tensed as she crouched low and pushed herself upward, barely resting in one place as she continued to leap and pull herself toward the summit.

Elise paused near the top, her breath coming hard from the effort of the climb. She inhaled calmly and waited for her pulse to even out before she slowly climbed the last metre, her fingers digging into sharp stones as she poked her head just over the lip. It was a twenty metre dash to the security fence and she waited patiently as a security bot rumbled past. It stopped to scan the immediate area before continuing on its patrol.

'Elise,' Alex's voice suddenly burst into her head, 'it's about to hit the fan. Tong just called a meeting.' There was a pause as Alex awaited her reply, but she continued to silently watch the Bot. 'I'm in for it now.' Alex moaned

'Thanks for this Alex. I'm sorry to bring Tong down on you.' Elise had to admit she was surprised Alex had covered for her, it's not like he had to and he barely knew her. She could easily understand his loyalty to Paul and JC, he had technically always been right there with them through everything.

'I can handle Tong. But Paul's gonna kill me!' Alex continued and Elise winced. She had honestly expected that Tong would have discovered her absence hours ago. Or that Paul would have noticed. Perhaps she had let her ego grow too large, to believe that anyone would actually miss her.

'He won't, not when he sees this.' Elise reassured Alex. This snapped Alex out of his indulgent self-pity and he took in all the data she had been broadcasting for the last forty minutes.

'Wait; am I seeing what I think I'm seeing? Majestic 12 at X-51?' Alex was more astounded than Elise had been. Though she hadn't anticipated Morgan would be here, it didn't surprise her that he would forcefully coerce a breakaway group of researchers to work for him. Elise slithered over the top of the cliff like a large black lizard, her belly pressed against the rough gravel. She made her way toward the high fence surrounding the base.

'Elise?' Tong had finally realised where she was. 'What the hell do you think you're doing?' He demanded but she was already nearing the perimeter.

'What I was made to do.' She replied bluntly. Tong began to utter an order but as she reached the fence the signal was jammed. There was a moment of static and then silence. It didn't bother Elise, she wouldn't miss a reprimand from Tong but from this point in, she was completely on her own.

She imagined the scene at the lab in Hong Kong. Right now Tracer would be swearing, likely berating Alex, who would take it in silence. Paul and JC would be springing into action, on their way to Vandenberg at this very moment with Jock. At least that's what she hoped. They wouldn't get there in time to back her up, or save her is she got into trouble, but she desperately wanted to believe that Paul would come for her. That someone out there genuinely cared about her as a human and not as a weapon.

She twined her fingers through the wire fence, clambering toward the top, the metal jangling noisily under her weight. She delicately picked her way over the razor wire, pulling her coat up to avoid snagging as she dropped to the other side. The ground crunched under her feet when she made impact but it was negligible over the whirr and whine of the patrol bots. She ran to the side of the building, flattening herself against the cool stone as she started edging her way toward the back. There had to be a rear entrance somewhere.

The ground vibrated beneath her feet as the security bot rumbled toward her. Elise squeezed herself between two steel shafts, trying to blend with the meagre shadows. The bot loomed into view and Elise waited until it passed around the corner. She looked along the shafts and spied an exhaust vent far up on one side. She planted her feet precariously on the bolts that held the shaft together. They protruded by only a centimetre or two but it was more than enough. She shimmied up the shaft, grasping for the next set of bolts, the cold metal digging into her fingers.

As she climbed higher a gust of wind persistently tugged at her coat. Her foot slipped from one of the bolts and she barely held on as the security bot returned on its patrol far below her. The bolt she gripped began to draw blood but she regained her balance. Finally she reached the vent and she battered it inwards, no time for subtlety. She peered into the gloom and grasped the inner sides of the shaft as she struggled to get her kit bag off her back. She pushed it into the vent and just barely managed to squeeze through the small opening herself.

In the space of a blink she engaged her visual augmentations and she could see along the tunnel as though it was bright as daylight inside. She wormed her way through the shaft, pushing her bag along with her hands as she pulled her body forward on her elbows. She noticed that the cut on her hand was crusted with dried blood. She had forgotten it was even there, despite the dull throb of pain that accompanied the injury. The nanites in her body would already be tackling this minor wound, sealing the torn flesh and fighting infection. Elise considered how abnormal it was to not heed the damage to her body; the average citizen would certainly take better care of themselves, they couldn't afford to ignore injuries.

'_There are some advantages to being a freak.'_ She mused as she continued to squirm through the vent. Elise kept her ears open for the tell tale scuttle of spider bots but there thankfully seemed to be none in the area. She could hear the extraction fan up ahead, indicating that she was nearing an exit. She rounded a corner in the shaft and found herself directly behind the whirring fan. She inched the maintenance hatch open and looked around the small staff kitchen. Fortunately it was empty at this time of night. She dropped down into the kitchen, staying low behind the benches and stoves, not knowing when someone might suddenly walk by.

Elise didn't know the layout of this building at all, she decided her best bet would be to find a security station or an Ops Room from which she could access cameras and figure out where Morgan might be. There ought to be a security station at the main entrance, so she decided to make her way toward the front of the building. Elise easily located the nearest stairwell and climbed down to the ground level. Security seemed light inside, as though the main focus was on keeping people from entering the base.

'_Or __from leaving perhaps.'_ She concluded. Elise wondered how long MJ12 had occupied Vandenberg, she had never heard Morgan mention it, but as she now knew he had kept a lot of things from her. She peeked from the base of the stairwell out into an open corridor. There were a pair of elevators directly across from her and she could hear security cameras scanning the area. She leaned out from the doorway and found that the camera was mounted on the wall nearest her. She waited until it had turned away and she quickly scurried along the wall until she was in its blind spot. As the camera turned to scan behind her she continued down to the far end of the corridor, approaching what looked to be the main foyer.

Three MJ12 troops sat at the security terminal and Elise smirked. She pulled a gas grenade from her belt, hit the trigger and slid it across the floor. It came to rest just below the security station and with a single warning blip a cloud of gas erupted, enveloping the three guards. Two of them where overwhelmed by the fumes; falling unconscious at their terminals. The third trooper staggered free, gasping for fresh air. Elise pounced on him in an instant, knocking him out with her prod. She hacked into the nearest terminal, the first order of business being to lock the main building down. She terminated communication within the entire complex and monitored the reaction of the guards in the courtyard as the blast doors sealed off every entrance. She hadn't wanted to use lethal force but she didn't have time to sit here and counter any attempts they made to reverse the lock down. She disabled the friend-or-foe protocols of all the exterior bots and turrets. Pandemonium erupted on the security screen beside her as the troopers in the courtyard scattered to find cover. She felt the tremor of pounding explosions as the heavy bots opened fire and the Commando's retaliated.

As she scanned through the cameras trying to locate Everett she logged into the personnel files, pulling up data on Gary Savage. She studied his ID photo, wanting to keep an eye out for him as she continued her search. The rumble of gunfire continued unabated outside as Elise examined the floor plan of the building. There was a series of labs on the top floor, listed as being restricted entry, but she could not access any internal surveillance for them.

'_That has to be where Morgan is hiding.'_ She thought, knowing how paranoid Everett was. He would never allow cameras in his lab. Elise located Gary and his staff on the floor above her. They were huddled in a corner as their minders attempted to make contact with the rest of their unit. It was clear the troopers were growing increasingly anxious and Elise feared how they might react if they remained cut off from the chain of command. She needed to get up there and diffuse the situation before civilians were harmed. Before she left the security terminal Elise deactivated all the cameras within the complex, she didn't want anyone monitoring her. She swept away from the front entry, stepping over the bodies of the unconscious guards as she headed for the elevator.

It was a quick ride to the next floor and Elise hunkered down inside the elevator as the doors chimed open. She couldn't detect any heat signatures in the corridor outside and she rolled out of the elevator, diving for cover behind a sofa. There was no sudden spray of gunfire so she slinked down the corridor to the research centre. Elise crept toward the glass sliding doors that led into the lab, staying low and hugging the wall so that she wouldn't set off the motion detector. She peered through the glass and saw two MJ12 troops standing guard down the hall, outside the open lab doors. They weren't the two she had observed on the monitor, so she had at least four to contend with.

Elise sighed, in the past four soldiers wouldn't have even given her pause. But she was trying to avoid hurting people. She grimaced as she considered her actions downstairs, turning the bots against the troopers outside. She was naive if she thought there wouldn't be any human casualties as a result of that.

'_I can't just adjust my principles because it would be easier.'_ She chided herself. _'Yet there are civilians in there.' _Elise had no doubt that the minute she attacked the MJ12 soldiers would open fire and though she could dodge and even take a few hits, who's to say that a stray bullet wouldn't end up killing one of the researchers. The longer the conflict was drawn out the chances of such a mishap increased. She wouldn't be having this crisis of conscience if all the men that signed on with Majestic 12 were evil at heart, but she knew many of them believed they were fighting the good fight. At one time Paul and JC had thought that too and so did she, until they learned the truth. _'Here and now though, I can't avoid harming these men. All I can do is try to minimise the damage.'_ Even if it meant endangering Gary and his team. _'The ends do not justify the means.'_

Elise took a deep breath and un-holstered her pistol; rising slowly from her crouching position. She stepped away from the wall and the glass doors slid open as they registered her presence.

"Hey, look there." One of the troopers remarked and she heard them readying their weapons. She waited patiently, knowing that the anticipation would unsettle them. "Go check it out." He commanded at length to his comrade and Elise dashed into the hall. They both gasped in surprise at her appearance, hesitating for a moment, gifting Elise with an extra few precious seconds. She zigzagged as they opened fire, moving too fast for them to get a bearing on her. The one nearest the lab gave up on trying to nail her and randomly sprayed the corridor with bullets. She fired a single round and he collapsed on the ground, screaming and clutching at his shattered knee.

His cries diverted the attention of his partner for a split second but that was time enough for Elise to bridge the remaining distance between them. She rammed the prod into his side, his body overcome with spasms. Elise dove past him into the lab as he collapsed to the floor, bullets whizzing past her as the two remaining soldiers opened fire. She sought cover behind a workbench, hot lead hammering into her makeshift barrier.

The scientists had been corralled into the corner behind the soldiers so she didn't dare to blindly return fire to try and suppress them. She waited as they continued to fire, feeling every contact vibrate through the metal against her back. The wall behind the bench was perforated by bullets, chunks of it beginning to collapse. Elise considered her options. She could lob a gas-grenade over there, it'd be uncomfortable for everyone but at least it would resolve the situation quickly and harmlessly. They ceased fire, realising they were wasting their bullets as she was not about to panic and flee from her cover.

"Throw down your weapons and come out!" One of them called and Elise scoffed quietly at his command. "Or we'll kill the eggheads." She heard the scientists gasp at his threat and Elise's eyes narrowed.

'_Alright asshole.'_ She spun away from the workbench and a hail of bullets hissed past her. As she fired her pistol a bullet slammed into her shoulder and she fell backwards, moving with the impact. She used the momentum to roll back to her knees and brought her gun to bear on the final soldier. He stood with his hands on his head and gun at his feet but his eyes were fixed on his companion. The other soldier lay on the floor, blood pooling on the white tiles from the bullet wound in his head.

Elise rose to her feet and approached him slowly. As she drew near she saw a glimmer of recognition in his eyes. Rather than seeming relieved at their timely rescue the gaggle of scientists cringed at the sight of her.

"Shit, they've gone berserk." She heard one of them mutter.

"On your knees." Elise ordered the soldier and he complied without hesitation. She kicked the assault rifle away from him and looked around for something to bind him with. "You got any rope around here, or something?" She asked of the scientists but they just gaped at her silently. Elise scowled at their lack of compliance. _'Are they in shock or what?' _Gary Savage emerged from amongst the huddling scientists and he held his hand out to them in reassurance.

"I think its Unit Six." He stated and the rest of them blinked in surprise. The fear receded from their eyes as they turned from Gary and studied Elise eagerly. The intense curiosity made Elise's skin crawl. Suddenly she felt like a specimen under a microscope. "Matt, grab some peristaltic tubing. That ought to suffice." Gary instructed one of his assistants who scurried off and returned with a bundle of plastic tubing.

He passed it to Elise, maintaining as much distance from her as he could. Elise shrugged off Matt's behaviour, she was used to people being afraid of her. She tightly bound the soldier's hands and feet with the tubing. She returned to the corridor and took hold of the other two soldiers, dragging them both into the lab. A trail of blood smeared the floor behind her as the wounded soldier continued to whimper and cradle his knee. She trussed up the unconscious trooper and then retrieved their weapons.

"Wow, Unit Six in the flesh. The rogue." One of the women gushed as Elise worked and she bristled at the clinical label. Deftly she unloaded and dismantled the assault rifles, throwing the ammunition and trigger assemblies down the medical waste hatch.

'_Six…does that mean there were five others before me?'_ Elise trembled slightly. _'That makes me… I'm not the original...'_ She struggled to come to terms with this revelation.

"But I'm… he said I was his prototype." Elise muttered feebly as she looked down at her body, her fragile mind desperately seeking answers. Gary watched her quizzically as Elise's eyes flickered frantically about her. _'I am me, I'm an individual… I killed the other one. Didn't she deserve to live? She was an abomination… just a clone…. But what if I…? What gives me the right?' _Elise couldn't bear to think anymore and she swallowed a cry of anguish.

"I guess by he, you mean Morgan Everett?" Gary snarled as he uttered her creator's name. The sound of it snapped Elise from her tormented introspection. "I assume it's him you've come for Six."

"I have a name." Elise muttered petulantly.

"I'm sorry. In Everett's notes you are always referred to as Unit Six, that's the only name we ever had for you." He held out his hand. "I'm Gary Savage."

"Elise Ever…" She paused as she grasped his hand. "Just Elise. And I came here looking for you."

"For me?" He seemed genuinely surprised.

"I… it's a long story. The short of it being, I didn't expect Morgan to be here. But since he is I'll deal with him first and then we can talk." Gary nodded. "I assume he's on the top floor?"

"Yeah, I have limited access to the main labs, but his _inner sanctum_ we can't help you with. He's a paranoid nut; I don't think there's any way you could hack through the security codes he's got on that door."

"Oh, I'll find a way." Elise whispered dangerously. "The rest of you stay here and keep an eye on them." She pointed at the soldiers that lay prone on the ground. "See if you can do something about his knee." Elise added but she didn't think the scientists had any inclination to care for their former watchman. "Stay close." She instructed Gary as she started back to the elevator.

"Wait!" He called out and she halted. "What about _your_ wound?" Gary pointed at her shoulder and Elise looked indifferently at the ragged hole in her coat.

"Oh yeah… I'll deal with that later." She stated and turned on her heel, there was no time to waste. Who knew how long it would be before the soldiers outside managed to gain entry. The path to the elevator was clear and as they rode up to the top floor Gary cleared his throat hesitantly.

"Ahem… you seemed to have had a minor identity crisis just before, am I right?" He asked tentatively and Elise nodded as she gave him a side long glance. "I think then I'd better warn you. When we get inside Everett's lab…"

"I'm going to see a whole lot of me, right?" Elise stated, trying to maintain her composure.

"Yeah… something like that." Gary winced and as they reached their floor Elise pushed him against the side of the elevator.

"Stay behind me." She commanded as she shielded his body with hers. The doors slid open and Elise stalked forwards, her pistol at the ready.

"Actually security inside is fairly lax, they guard my lab and the entrance. Everett doesn't let anyone in his labs aside from me and a couple of my assistants." Elise quirked an eyebrow.

"He lets you out-number him, without guards or surveillance? That doesn't sound like Morgan." Gary sighed at her observation.

"He has hostages; I couldn't raise a finger against him. Also his men had orders to slaughter everyone on my team if some misfortune should befall him. Though that being said he wasn't often here until recently."

"His lab in Paris was compromised." Elise remarked as they approached the heavy security doors.

"There's a couple of my team in here, but aside from that you'll only find Everett and maybe his henchman, Toby Atanwe. Not counting the clo…" Gary paused again, watching her nervously.

"Toby is here? The double crossing bastard, I knew it!" Elise scowled; she bet he fled directly here the minute Tong allowed him out of the Luminous Path compound. She nodded her head at Gary, indicating that he should open the door. He placed his hand in the bio-scanner, his identity confirmed with a pleasant chime. The doors began to roll back and Elise stepped over the threshold.


	22. The Thralls

"Gary." The middle aged researcher acknowledged his team leader as he glanced up from his terminal. The man did a double take as he registered that Elise was there as well, gun in hand. She endured the familiar look of panic and Gary jumped forward to reassure his colleague.

"Don't worry Donald, it's not one of the thralls." Gary blurted and Donald bounced excitedly in his chair at the news.

"You mean… Unit Six?" Donald examined Elise eagerly and Gary grimaced. Elise let out a small sigh; it seemed this was just something she would have to get used to.

"Who else is here?" Gary changed the topic. "Is Toby around?"

"I don't know where he is, I'm just glad he isn't here. Gives me the willies." Donald shuddered. "Can't work with him looming about. It's just Caitlin and Martin through in the _spawning_ room." He jerked his thumb toward the door on the other side of the lab. "And of course Everett is holed up in his sanctum."

Elise approached the door he had indicated and she heard the two men following behind her. She swiped her hand over the control panel and the doors whooshed open. Elise blinked in surprise as she peered into the large, dimmed room. She thought she had been prepared for this but she had been mistaken. Row upon row of stasis tanks occupied the lab, several of them were empty but within the rest she could make out blurred silhouettes. Soft light filtered down from the ceiling, barely enough to illuminate the walkway between the tanks and Elise hesitantly stepped toward the nearest one. All she could hear was the gentle hum of the apparatus and the bleep of the machines that monitored the clone's vital stats. Within the gloomy tank the clone was suspended, curled and slumbering peacefully, oblivious to the cold world outside. She looked down the row and saw more of the same, clones in various stages of growth. Her heart trembled at the sight.

"I didn't think… there are so many." She whispered in the near silence. "And are they all… all like her?" Gary seemed confused by her question.

"You've met another?" He asked in surprise and Elise nodded.

"And lived to tell the tale." Donald smirked with glee.

"There are seven active units, not including yourself. Another dozen or so here that are fully matured and awaiting activation." He indicated the tank in front of them. "The rest are not yet… imprinted, I guess you could say."

"How could you help him do this?" Elise hissed and Gary's shoulders stiffened.

"At first we subtly tinkered with their DNA, trying to find a way to make them unviable. But Everett's no fool; he saw the failures for what they really were. My people have suffered greatly; you've no right to judge us." He stated calmly and Elise scoffed. She knew she was misdirecting her anger, but she couldn't help herself.

"Where is he?" She asked through gritted teeth and Gary pointed to the far side of the room.

"Down that corridor, past the surgery."

"Stay here, I'll deal with him alone." Elise commanded and turned on her heel. She stormed away from the clones, barely registering the gasp of shock that erupted from the woman Caitlin as she swept past her. It was clear the three technicians had been unaware of the furore occurring outside of their lab, calmly continuing with their daily routine. She hoped this meant she could catch Everett by surprise.

Elise's pulse raced as she approached Everett's lab, stopping in front of the security door. She slid her kitbag off her shoulders, crouching as she rummaged within. Elise retrieved the LAM's Macca had refused as payment and attached them to the door. She synchronised the timers and hurried back down the hallway, seeking cover in the surgery.

Elise tried not to imagine what the surgery was used for as she listened for the bleep of the LAM's activating. The blast shook the lab and Elise ran toward the door, not waiting for the smoke to clear. She leapt through the twisted hole into the room beyond. Beneath the debris, she identified it as Everett's makeshift sleeping quarters and she scurried into the next room.

"Drop it." Elise snarled as she levelled her gun at Morgan. He stood in front of a bank of terminals, pistol in his hand and he hesitated. She could see his mind whirling as he tried to decide what his best course of action was. He was trying to determine how intent she was on killing him. Should he comply and hope for a rescue, or make a desperate attempt to kill her now. Finally the gun clattered to the floor. "Kick it over here." She commanded and Everett obeyed, raising his hands as he did so. She caught it with her foot and holstered her own weapon. She didn't take her eyes off Everett as she bent down to retrieve his gun. Elise dropped the magazine from the pistol and cleared the chamber, quickly dismantling the gun and letting the pieces scatter on the floor. They studied each other silently and at length Everett was the first to speak.

"It was inevitable that you would seek your creator." He stated imperiously, letting his hands fall to his sides; he felt confident of his safety since she had put her weapon away.

"I didn't come here looking for you. But what a pleasant surprise it is." A predatory grin spread across her lips and she stalked toward him. "There's no-one to save you, no more safety precautions." She tapped the side of her head. "I can hurt you as much as I like." He was taken aback by her words, having assumed that she would want to talk, not torture him. He recovered his composure quickly, fighting back the fear as she drew nearer.

"You won't kill me, you want answers. Why have I done all this, why did I make you?" She paused at his words. "A man might as well ask God why."

"You're not God, Morgan; you're not even a _man_ anymore. You're just scum."

"For someone that has seen so little of life you seem overly certain of your convictions. When you have lived as long as I, seen what I have seen, maybe then you will understand what I'm trying to do." He shook his head at her. "Humanity needs to be kept safe and sometimes it requires force. If I can maintain the status quo and let people go about their daily lives, happily ignorant of the dangers surrounding them, doesn't the end justify the means?"

"No, it doesn't. I don't care how you try to justify it Morgan and don't try to tell me that I can't possibly understand. Because I could feel the truth from the beginning, deep in my bones, always in the very core of me." She pressed her hand against her chest as she spoke. "That's why I'm still here; it's why you couldn't just erase me. Because I'm not just some construct shaped by you. I'm a real living, feeling _person_." Everett scoffed at her words.

"Don't be absurd, you're nothing! You're a genetic aberration; your entire personality is derived from false memories crafted by me." He sneered down at her, as though she were something vile he had just scraped off his shoes. "Just because Tong deactivated that chip in your skull doesn't mean you are free of me. Every thought, every action is still determined by your personality. The one that _I_ made for you. Ungrateful creature!" Elise's fingers curled into a fist and Everett crashed against his monitors as she punched him squarely in the face. She kicked his legs out from under him and he dropped face-first to the floor, grunting at the impact. Elise knelt down beside him, her knee digging into his shoulder as she wrenched his arm upwards.

"Then… you've no-one… to blame… but… yourself." She ground out through her teeth as one by one she broke the fingers of his left hand. She delighted in the sharp cry of pain that erupted from his lips with each satisfying snap. She dropped his hand and rolled him onto his back. Everett crawled away from her and propped himself up against the wall, cradling his twisted fingers and gasping in shock.

"When the enemies are at your gates, you will regret this. You'll beg me for that clone army!" Elise gave him a forbearing smile and rest her chin against her knuckles.

"You're final words ought to be a little more profound, don't you think?" She spoke evenly and Everett's eyes widened in shock.

"You…?" He stammered. "A _real_ human would grant me mercy." He jeered and Elise laughed, even til the end he was trying to manipulate her.

"I hope it's a comfort to you _father._ To know you were right about me after all." She leapt forward, not giving him a chance to reply. Elise grasped his head and twisted it sharply, snapping his neck in one fluid motion. "I made it quick." She said as she laid his corpse on the floor. "That's mercy enough for you." She staggered away from him and looked around the room. She needed to get Alex here, he would be able to sort through all the data on Everett's computers, figure out what he was up to. She sat down at the nearest terminal and issued a withdrawal order using Everett's authorisation code. Right now all she wanted was to liberate Gary and his team from Majestic-12.

She logged into the security system and removed the lock down on the building. Elise remembered Gary saying something about hostages and she located them on one of the sub-levels. The guards were retreating, complying with her order and she released the locks on their cells. The hostages, a grizzled looking veteran and a young woman glanced at each other uncertainly, before they made a dash for freedom. Elise glanced once more at Everett as she rose to leave, wondering what she ought to be feeling at this moment.

'_Sadness, elation, regret?'_ She didn't really feel anything apart from satisfaction that she had accomplished her goal, she had thwarted Morgan Everett. Gary and his team-mates were huddled together at the end of the corridor, anxiously awaiting her return. She could see them visibly relax as she stepped through the ruined door.

"I freed the hostages and ordered the MJ12 troops to retreat. They seem to be complying." Caitlin sighed in relief.

"Thank goodness, now we can get back to our real work."

"So what's next?" Gary asked.

"I need to get over to the Comm. building and disable the signal jamming so I can contact Paul and JC." Elise walked back past the rows of clones, keeping her eyes fixed firmly forward, unable to bring herself to look up at them. They rode in silence as they descended in the lift to the ground floor. Elise could feel their eyes on her as she brooded. She knew the question that was on their minds, but that none of them dared ask.

'_What happened to Everett?'_

"Dad!" The young woman cried as Gary emerged from the elevator and he threw his arms around her.

"Tiffany, thank god you're alright." Father and daughter clung to one another and Elise felt a tightness in her chest. She smiled though, glad that she had reunited this family. "Sam." Gary looked up at the other hostage, grasping the man's hand in greeting. "Glad to see you're well."

"Ha! As well as can be expected after being cooped up in that cell for so long." Sam grumbled. Elise detached herself from the group and headed for the front doors. The courtyard was littered with the smoking ruins of the security bots and a few corpses, but there was no sign of any remaining troops. Elise descended the stairs to the ground, scanning the courtyard for any sign of danger as she slowly made her way toward the Comm. Building. She heard the ping of a silenced weapon firing and felt the projectile whiz past her face as she dove sideways. The bullet burrowed into the ground with a little puff of dust. The sniper opened fire in earnest and more dust clouds arose all around her. Elise scurried backwards seeking the shelter of the main building.

"What is it?" Gary cried as she burst back into the main foyer.

"There's a sniper on the roof." She informed them.

"Toby…" Gary discerned.

"How do I get up to the roof?"

"Service elevator near the stairwell." Sam pointed down the hall.

"Right, all of you stay put." Elise raced to the elevator and pressed the call button. As the elevator descended she took the stairs to the next floor. She pried open the doors to the lift shaft and jumped down onto the roof of the elevator car. Elise unlocked the service hatch and dropped inside. She hit the button for the roof and leapt up to grasp the edge of the hatch, pulling herself back on top of the elevator. It slowly ascended to the roof and as soon as the doors chimed open bullets sprayed the interior of the lift. Elise scrambled up the cabling and kicked one of the air vents open, crawling out of the shaft.

Elise freed her pistol as she hugged the vent, scanning the roof for Toby. He was hunkered down on the far side, watching the elevator. Elise scrambled backwards, sliding down from the elevator housing and onto the roof proper. She dashed toward a cluster of exhaust vents, gunfire snapping at her heels as she skidded behind cover.

"Everett's dead Toby!" She called out to him, trying to get him to lay down his weapons. "It's over." Her head jerked up at the staccato of his boots on the concrete. Elise leapt up from her hiding place as he charged toward her. She gasped in surprise as her eyes fell on Toby and she opened fire. Her bullets ricocheted harmlessly off the armour that had been grafted to his chest. "What the hell?" He barrelled toward her, looking like Frankenstein's monster with his shaved head and rows of stitches across his skull.

Now she understood why Donald had found Toby so unsettling but she didn't have time to examine the rest of his augmentations as Toby opened fire. Elise dashed across the roof, her superior speed the only thing preventing her from being riddled with bullets. Toby might have been upgraded, but he was still only a mech-aug.

"My loyalty…" Toby droned, "is unquestionable, Mr Everett." He plodded across the roof, searching for Elise. "Unquestionable…. Unquestionable…" Elise could hear him muttering to himself as she hung from the edge of the building, her fingers pressed against the unyielding concrete.

'_What did Everett do to him?__'_Elise wondered. Clearly Morgan had done more than simply implant augmentations. She knew that mech-augs had a tendency to become aggressive and unstable after years of being shunned by their fellow humans. Toby seemed to have snapped entirely and Elise suspected Everett had been doing some tinkering in Toby's brain.

"I'll see to it, Mr Everett…. Your helicopter is waiting." Toby lumbered past her and Elise slowly pulled herself up onto the roof, creeping behind Toby and pulling her pistol from it's holster. "Half a clove of garlic and add the chopped parsley… No you can't do this to me! What are you doing?!" Elise assumed that his skull had been reinforced so she targeted his neck. "I can't feel my legs, I can't…. I can't."

"Elise?" Toby mewled and Elise hesitated. "Kill me, end my suffering, Elise." His pitiful words tugged at Elise's insides. She knew what it was like to have a broken mind, she wouldn't wish this upon anyone. "No!" Toby spun suddenly, clutching at his head. "I want to live. I want to live!" He saw her and raised his gun. Elise fired, her first bullet shattered his collar bone, the remainder tore into his arm or ricocheted off his armour. Toby roared in pain and lumbered toward her, blood gushing from his wounds.

"Toby stop, we can get you help." Elise pleaded with him but he continued to advance, a frenzied gleam in his eye.

"Do it, kill me." Toby laughed, his mouth hanging open in a feral grin. "Kill us both." Elise took a step back, horrified at the sight of him, hunched over double and still advancing on her.

"Morgan's dead Toby, you're free of him. We both are. Stop!" A chill ran down Elise's spine, she understood the meaning behind Toby's words. He caught her with his uninjured arm, sweeping her up into a crushing hug.

"Toby, no." Elise gasped as she fought to escape his iron grip, the air was crushed from her and she could feel pressure building against her spine.

"Kill us both!" Toby commanded, his laughter unabated. "Do it, do it!" Elise jammed her pistol into his gaping mouth and turned her face away as she pulled the trigger. She felt his grip loosen and she struggled free as he slumped to the ground. Elise twisted and leapt from the roof as Toby's kill switch activated. Shrapnel pummelled the back of her legs and torso and Elise curled up in pain as several pieces pierced her internal organs. Air whipped past her body, catching her coat and jerking her body about as she plummeted toward the ground. The shock of impact and the coldness of water robbed her body of breath and moments later she suffered a second jolt as she hit the bottom of the reservoir.

The water muffled all sounds except the pounding of blood in her ears and even though she briefly managed to flicker her eyes open, Elise was so dazed she couldn't tell up from down. She felt motion in the water beside her, something grabbing hold of her and pulling her along. Elise was heaved out of the tank and she could hear voices, though they still sounded muffled to her, as though they were very distant. Her world had been reduced to cold, wet, painful darkness. She tried to form a question but the words would not come.

"We're here, just rest, Elise." The voice sounded familiar to her, calm and reassuring. "Let us take care of you now."


End file.
